[Treatment of extrapulmonary tuberculosis and complicated forms of pulmonary tuberculosis]

Abstract

Tuberculosis is one of the most important health problems worldwide. In developed countries there is an increased number of cases due to different reasons. The most likely determinant cause is from immigrants coming from high endemic areas. This phenomenon is a direct cause of the increase in extrapulmonary and complicated pulmonary forms of tuberculosis. There are only a few controlled clinical trials evaluating therapies for extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Consequently, documented evidence is scarce, particularly in paediatrics. The majority of therapeutic recommendations are based on series of cases or expert opinions, with a lack of uniformity provided by the different consensus of the main scientific societies. The main objective of this fourth consensus by the Tuberculosis Study Group of the Spanish Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases (Sociedad Española de Infectología Pediátrica, SEIP) is to perform a thorough revision of the data obtained from scientific literature, in order to establish recommendations for the treatment of extrapulmonary tuberculosis and complicated forms of pulmonary tuberculosis, adapted to the characteristics and drugs available in Spain.