8/13/2019 Posted on 07

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8/13/2019 Posted on 07

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In recent years, rates of drug-resistant TB have been spreading fast across the world, causing alarm among public healthofficialsand prompting calls for more research into new and more effective treatments.

The researchers, whose study was published by theProceedings of the National Academy of Scienceson Monday, split 95TB patients who were on standard antibiotic treatment into two groups. For the first eight weeks of their treatment, 44 ofthem were also givenhigh dosevitamin D, while the remaining 51 got placebos.

Anna Coussens from BritainsNational Institutefor Medical Researchmeasured signs of inflammation in blood samples tosee what effect the vitamin D had on immune responses.

We found that a large number of these inflammatory markers fell further and faster in patients receiving vitamin D, shesaid.

The researchers also found thatMycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause TB, cleared from the phlegm coughedup from deep in the lungs faster in patients on vitamin D, taking an average of 23 days to become undetectable under themicroscope compared to 36 days in those on placebo.

Martineau said it was too early to recommend all TB patients take high-dose vitamin D alongside antibiotics, as moreresearch with a larger group of patients was needed first.Soaking up the suns rays while on antibiotic treatment seems to help TB patients recover faster

- See more at:http://www.bworldonline.com/weekender/content.php?id=58027#sthash.naKA8sYL.d

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- See more at:

http://www.bworldonline.com/weekender/content.php?id=58027#sthash.naKA8sYL.d

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