Tuberculosis preventive treatment (TPT) is one of the main interventions recommended by the WHO to achieve the objectives of the “Stop TB” strategy. Two years after the last recommendations were made, it was important for the WHO to provide an update, taking into account new evidence and the current level of knowledge about TPT. With this in mind, the organization has published its new 2020 recommendations for TPT, some of which are summarized below.
The following options are recommended for the treatment of latent tuberculosis infection, regardless of HIV status:
- 6 or 9 months of daily isoniazid,
- 3 months weekly rifapentine plus isoniazid,
- 3 months daily isoniazid plus rifampicin (Strong recommendation).
- One month of daily rifapentine plus isoniazid or 4 months of daily rifampicin alone may also be proposed as alternatives. (Conditional recommendation).
In settings where tuberculosis transmission is high, adults and adolescents living with HIV who have an unknown or positive status for latent tuberculosis infection, and who are not likely to have the active form of the disease, should receive at least 36 months of daily isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT), whether or not the person is on ARV, and regardless of the degree of immunosuppression, history of tuberculosis treatment and pregnancy. (Conditional recommendation).