My wife is being treated for tuberculosis with a 6-month regimen of taking medication. She has been treated for more than 4 months and has just discovered she is about 4 weeks pregnant. Can you advise me if it is dangerous to get pregnant while being treated for tuberculosis?

The emergence of multidrug resistance is a major threat to TB care and control globally. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that up to half a million new cases of MDR-TB occur each year worldwide. Currently, the drug Bedaquiline is approved for use as part of a combination drug therapy for the treatment of multidrug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis when there is no effective treatment regimen.

Pulmonary tuberculosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are both diseases with many similar characteristics that can easily be confused. To make an accurate diagnosis and get the right treatment, patients should have a clear understanding of the basic information and how to distinguish between the two diseases.