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Mike Mitka

JAMA. 2001;286:1443.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

A new study suggests that specialty care for treating multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDRTB) reduces mortality rates by more than half. The findings appear in the August Chest.

The study examined all MDRTB cases (n = 81) reported in Florida from January 1994 to July 1997. The outcomes of patients treated at least partially in a specialty treatment center were compared with those treated only in outpatient community care.

"We found that intensive, specialized care for MDRTB resulted in dramatic reductions in mortality," said David Ashkin, study author and medical executive director at A. G. Holley State Tuberculosis Hospital in Lantana, Fla. "Forty-five percent of patients who received care in a community care setting died vs 18% of patients who received care in the inpatient specialty treatment facility."

The study suggests that many outpatient community facilities and physicians may lack the necessary financial and specialty medical resources required for . . . [Full Text of this Article]