Predominance of multi-drug-resistant LAM and Beijing family strains among Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates recovered from prison inmates in Tula Region, Russia

The genotypic characteristics and drug susceptibility profiles of clinical isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis recovered from prison hospital patients in the Tula region (central Russia) during 2001 and 2002 are reported. The emergence of multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) poses a major health risk to the population, with economic implications for TB control. Prisons serve as a continuous source of TB transmission. The results showed that members of the LAM and Beijing families are major contributors to the epidemiological picture of TB in the population studied. The two families of strains accounted for most of the drug-resistant TB in the population. The genotypic characteristics of the M. tuberculosis predominant LAM strain that was responsible for 31 % of TB cases in this setting are presented.