There are six anti-tuberculosis drugs on the Essential Drug List of the World Health Organization: isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide, ethambutol, streptomycin, and thioacetazone.

There are other drugs and drug classes that are active against M. tuberculosis.  With few exceptions, these often called second-line drugs are more expensive, less efficacious, and poorer tolerated than the first line drugs.

This review will concentrate on the essential drugs.  Clinicians as well as public health specialists dealing with tuberculosis should have some basic knowledge about these drugs, including their pharmacokinetics, dosage, adverse drug events, and interactions with other medications.

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