Tag: Pyrazinamide

Globally, tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading infectious cause of death, with over 10 million people falling ill each year. A critical aspect of combating this resilient disease is understanding the multifaceted mechanisms of Antituberculosis drugs, which attack *Mycobacterium tuberculosis* at multiple, essential life processes.

The addition of pyrazinamide to combination therapies in the 1970s famously reduced the duration of tuberculosis treatment from over a year to just six months. Its sterilizing activity against persistent, non-replicating bacteria makes it an essential drug, and understanding **how does pyrazinamide work** has been a decades-long scientific puzzle.

Up to 22% of patients treated with pyrazinamide (PZA) as part of their anti-tuberculosis therapy experience joint pain, also known as arthralgia. The primary culprit behind this uncomfortable side effect is the drug's impact on the body's uric acid metabolism, which leads to a condition called hyperuricemia.

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the top ten causes of death worldwide. Effectively combating this infection requires a multi-pronged approach, and at the heart of the standard first-line regimen is the acronym HRZE. This article explains what HRZE stands for and how this combination of drugs is used to treat TB.