Abstract
BACKGROUND: Anti-tuberculosis drug concentrations are critical for the treatment of spinal tuberculosis. The distribution pattern of anti-tuberculosis drugs between the blood and the vertebral focus needs to be further explored. METHODS: A total of 31 spinal tuberculosis patients were prospectively included and then divided into a sclerotic group (15 cases) and a non-sclerotic group (16 cases) according to their preoperative CTs. All patients were treated with 2HERZ/6H(2)R(2)Z(2) chemotherapy for 4 weeks before the operation. During the operation, blood, normal vertebral bone tissue, and vertebral focus tissue were obtained, processed, and sent to the pharmacology laboratory. The concentration values of four anti-tuberculosis drugs in each sample were obtained in a pharmacology laboratory. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the concentrations of the four anti-tuberculosis drugs in the blood and the normal vertebral bone tissue between the two groups; however, there was a significant difference in the vertebral focus tissue. There existed a linear correlation of four anti-tuberculosis drug concentrations between the blood and the focus in the non-sclerotic bone group. CONCLUSIONS: The existence of sclerotic bone hinders the anti-tuberculosis drug distribution. In the absence of sclerotic bone in the vertebral focus, there exists a linear relationship of the four anti-tuberculosis drug concentrations between the blood and the vertebral focus of spinal tuberculosis patients.