Written question asked by Stephen O'Brien (Conservative) on Wednesday, 18 October 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 20 October 2006. It was answered by Caroline Flint (Labour) on Wednesday, 1 November 2006 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Tuberculosis

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans are in place for rapid and accurate diagnosis and contact tracing for cases of extreme drug-resistant tuberculosis in the UK;

Answer: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published its clinical guideline on the diagnosis and management of tuberculosis, and measures for its prevention and control, in March 2006.The guideline includes specific recommendations on the treatment of all forms of drug resistant tuberculosis, recommendations on diagnosis for cases of suspected tuberculosis infection, and contact tracing for all diagnosed cases of tuberculosis. The NICE guideline also recommends that if a risk assessment suggests a patient has multiple drug resistant (MDR) TB, rapid diagnostic tests should be conducted for antibiotic resistance.The NICE clinical guideline is available at:http://www.nice.org.uk/paqe.aspx?o=297929

Secondary information