International training course on tuberculosis treatment increases potential of specialists of the Ministry of Health of Turkmenistan

In an important step towards struggles with tuberculosis (TB) and improving patient care, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) held a five-day international training course on «Treatment of TB, RR-TB, and TB infection according to WHO and national guidelines».

The training course was held with the participation of phthisiologists from the Department of Infectious Disease Centre of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan and the Department of Tuberculosis of the Turkmen State Medical University (TSMU) named after M. Garryyev.

The course was conducted by WHO/Europe consultants Professor Alyona Skrahina and Dr. Elmira Gurbanova.

During the course, participants discussed a wide range of topics, including:

- New methods for diagnosing tuberculosis (TB) and tuberculosis infection

- Approaches to treating drug-susceptible tuberculosis (DS-TB) and rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) in both children and adults

- Clinical cases using short regimens for treating DS-TB and RR-TB.

Participants reviewed clinical cases related to RR-TB treatment and acute renal failure, myelosuppression, mental disorders, Clostridioides difficile, optic neuritis and peripheral neuropathy.

The international training course provided a valuable platform for health care workers to expand their knowledge and skills, facilitating collaboration and advancing MDR-TB treatment strategies.