Comparison of directly observed treatment short course (DOTS) with self-administered therapy in pulmonary tuberculosis in Udupi district of south India

Background: Directly observed treatment short course (DOTS) and self-administered therapy (SAT) are the treatment options available for tuberculosis (TB). Studies conducted worldwide have shown difference in treatment outcome with these two treatment modalities. Aim: The study was undertaken to compare treatment outcome of DOTS and SAT in patients of pulmonary TB taking SAT from a tertiary care hospital and DOTS from the DOTS centre of a government hospital. Material and Methods: It was a retrospective comparative study. The case record files of patients with pulmonary TB diagnosed from March 2011 to February 2012 were analysed as per the proforma. The sample size of patients was 150 (75 each from DOTS and SAT). Results: The treatment outcome in DOTS group was cured 70.7%, treatment completed 1.3%, failure 5.3%, deaths 10.7%, defaulters 8% and transferred out 4% whereas in SAT group, cure was seen in 68% and 4% completed the treatment, 1.3% had treatment failure, and 26.7% were lost to follow up which included deaths, defaulters and those patients who switched over to other hospitals. The treatment success rate was similar (72%) in both groups. There was no statistically significant difference observed in the average weight gain at the end of treatment between the two groups. A total of 11 adverse drug reactions (4 DOTS, 7 SAT) were recorded in the study. Conclusion: The study shows no statistically significant difference between success rate in patients taking DOTS and SAT.