Prevalence and risk factors of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in Jazan, Saudi Arabia

Abstract Background Drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) is a global challenge. Owing to its high annual mortality and morbidity rates, as stated in the annual global TB reports provided by WHO, the prevalence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) or rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis was shown to be increasing worldwide in 2021. Patients with tuberculosis from 2018 to 2022 represented ~40 million individuals, including 1.5 million with DR-TB. The study’s goal was to identify MDR-TB prevalence and risk factors in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. Patients and methods The research was done on 114 patients diagnosed with pulmonary TB in Jazan Chest Hospital from January to April, 2019. Demographic data were collected. Monteux test, chest radiograph, sputum smear, and Lowenstein–Jensen culture were performed for all patients with pulmonary TB. Patients were allocated in either group A, with 103 (90.4%) patients, if they had Mycobacterium tuberculosis -susceptible isolates, or in group B, with 11 (9.7%) patients, if they had M. tuberculosis -resistant isolates. Results The observed overall DR-TB prevalence was 9.7%. The proportion of MDR isolates was 7%, polyresistant isolate TB was 0.9%, rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis was 0.9%, and ethambutol-resistant TB was 0.9%. Females were more in group B (54.5%) than in group A (26.2%). Unmarried patients were higher in group A (60.2%) than in group B (29.3%). Comorbidities had significant values in the drug-resistant groups (90.9%). Conclusion The study showed that screening and treatment of DR-TB are crucial for the control of TB in Jazan and Saudi Arabia as a whole.