Adequacy of the New Pediatric Isoniazid/Rifampin/Pyrazinamide (HRZ) Tablet

Lack of quality-assured pediatric formulations of the first-line antituberculosis (anti-TB) drugs is barrier to optimized tuberculosis (TB) treatment outcome in children. In 2010 and subsequently modified in 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended increased dosages of the first-line anti-TB drugs for children, but there were no child-friendly fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations based on the guidelines. A large proportion of children treated with the new guidelines using old formulations did not achieve the desired rifampin peak concentration (Cmax) \> 8 mg/L and pyrazinamide Cmax \> 35 mg/L. The TB Alliance and the WHO led the development of a new child-appropriate isoniazid/rifampin/pyrazinamide (HRZ) and isoniazid/rifampin (HR) FDC formulation in line with current WHO recommended dosing guidelines. The new formulations dissolve quickly in liquid, have palatable fruit flavors, and are expected to improved daily adherence but no studies have evaluated the pharmacokinetics (PK) of the FDC formulation in children. The study team hypothesize that the new dispersible HRZ FDC tablet, dosed according to current WHO weight-band dosing recommendations will result in better PK parameters for each drug component than that achieved by the old formulation.