Rifampin and pyrazinamide, a two-drug combination used to treat tuberculosis, has caused at least five deaths and sixteen cases of severe liver damage. Until recently, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommended the combination of rifampin and pyrazinamide as a treatment for latent tuberculosis (TB). Patients with latent TB do not exhibit the signs of full-blown TB but, if left untreated, they may develop the potentially fatal condition.

Upon receiving the recent report of deaths and liver damage associated with the rifampin-pyrazinamide combination, the CDC issued new guidelines for treating TB patients. The agency now recommends a nine-month treatment program with isoniazid. In special cases, however, physicians may use the rifampin-pyrazinamide combination but should closely monitor the patient's liver function.

Approximately fifteen million Americans suffer from latent TB. However, accurate statistics of rifampin-pyrazinamide use are not available. The CDC began receiving reports of liver damage associated with rifampin-pyrazinamide in 1999.