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Rynhoud L, Kagee A. Prevalence of alcohol and drug use and their impact on adherence among hospitalised TB patients in South Africa. J Health Psychol 2024; 29:674-679. [PMID: 38247264 DOI: 10.1177/13591053231224124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the use of alcohol and drugs and the potential impact on adherence to medication for tuberculosis. Adult patients admitted to specialised tuberculosis hospitals in South Africa were assessed for drug use, alcohol use and adherence to tuberculosis medication. A total of 175 patients participated in the study; 32% reported harmful alcohol use, and 44% reported problematic use of drugs. Participants who used drugs were four times as likely (OR = 4.11, 95% CI (1.89, 8.91)) and those using alcohol were twice as likely (OR = 2.06, 95% CI (1.02, 5.08)) to be nonadherent to medication for tuberculosis. Prevalence of harmful/hazardous use of alcohol and other drugs was high and significantly correlated with poorer medication adherence. Routine screening for and treatment of substance use in patients on treatment for tuberculosis and ongoing monitoring of adherence to medication is recommended.
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Riccardi N, Occhineri S, Vanino E, Antonello RM, Pontarelli A, Saluzzo F, Masini T, Besozzi G, Tadolini M, Codecasa L. How We Treat Drug-Susceptible Pulmonary Tuberculosis: A Practical Guide for Clinicians. Antibiotics (Basel) 2023; 12:1733. [PMID: 38136767 PMCID: PMC10740448 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics12121733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide and pulmonary TB (PTB) is the main variant responsible for fueling transmission of the infection. Effective treatment of drug-susceptible (DS) TB is crucial to avoid the emergence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis-resistant strains. In this narrative review, through a fictional suggestive case of DS PTB, we guide the reader in a step-by-step commentary to provide an updated review of current evidence in the management of TB, from diagnosis to post-treatment follow-up. World Health Organization and Centre for Diseases Control (CDC) guidelines for TB, as well as the updated literature, were used to support this manuscript.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niccolò Riccardi
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Pisana, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Sara Occhineri
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Pisana, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Elisa Vanino
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Santa Maria delle Croci Hospital, AUSL Romagna, 48100 Ravenna, Italy
| | | | - Agostina Pontarelli
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Unit of Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Cotugno Hospital, Azienda Ospedaliera dei Colli, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Francesca Saluzzo
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Emerging Bacterial Pathogens Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute, San Raffaele University, 20132 Milan, Italy
| | | | | | - Marina Tadolini
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Infectious Disease Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, 40138 Bologna, Italy
- Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, 40138 Bologna, Italy
| | - Luigi Codecasa
- StopTB Italia ODV, 20159 Milan, Italy
- Regional TB Reference Centre, Villa Marelli Institute, ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, 20159 Milan, Italy
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Wen J, He JQ. The Causal Impact of the Gut Microbiota on Respiratory Tuberculosis Susceptibility. Infect Dis Ther 2023; 12:2535-2544. [PMID: 37815754 PMCID: PMC10651823 DOI: 10.1007/s40121-023-00880-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Recent cross-sectional research has demonstrated a substantial link between tuberculosis (TB) and gut microbiota. Nevertheless, the causal impact of the gut microbiota on TB susceptibility in humans remains unknown. METHODS The Mendelian randomization (MR) method was utilized for investigating the causality between them. The main method used for MR analysis was the inverse variance weighted (IVW) test, with the MR-Egger, weighted median, weighted mode, and simple median methods serving as supplements. And several sensitivity tests were carried out to validate the MR findings. RESULTS The IVW outcomes suggested that three bacterial traits exhibited associations with susceptibility to respiratory TB after Bonferroni correction, namely Lachnospiraceae UCG010 (odds ratio [OR] 1.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17-2.55, P = 0.005), Eubacterium (brachy group) (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.07-1.65, P = 0.009), and Ruminococcaceae UCG005 (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.52-0.98, P = 0.034). Sensitivity analyses demonstrated that horizontal pleiotropy and heterogeneity were absent, thereby guaranteeing the reliability of the results. CONCLUSION This research sheds light on the causal impact of gut microbiota on respiratory tuberculosis susceptibility, improving our knowledge of therapeutic strategies for managing TB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiayu Wen
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The Second People's Hospital of Meishan City, 177 Longtan Avenue, Section 1, Huairen Street, Renshou County, Meishan, 620500, China
| | - Jian-Qing He
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, No. 37, Guo Xue Alley, Chengdu, 610041, China.
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Gupta P, Singh P, Das A, Kumar R. Determinants of tuberculosis: an example of high tuberculosis burden in the Saharia tribe. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1226980. [PMID: 37920577 PMCID: PMC10619692 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1226980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Tuberculosis (TB) is a significant public health problem among the Saharia community, an underprivileged tribal group in the west-central part of India. There are several challenges for India's TB control program to curtail TB in the Saharia tribe. Malnutrition, poor health sector facilities, lower socio-economic status, and substance abuse are interconnected and synergistic factors contributing to a high burden of TB in the Saharia tribe. In this review, efforts are made to collate the findings of previous studies discussing the causes of high burden of TB in the Saharia tribe, social gaps for mitigating these preventable risk factors of TB in the Saharia tribe, and the plausible solutions for closing these gaps. The concept of Health in All Policies and intersectoral co-ordination is needed for the reduction of TB in the Saharia tribe and to make India TB-free by the year 2025.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Ravindra Kumar
- ICMR-National Institute of Research in Tribal Health, Jabalpur, India
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Kulkarni S, Weber SE, Buys C, Lambrechts T, Myers B, Drainoni ML, Jacobson KR, Theron D, Carney T. Patient and provider perceptions of the relationship between alcohol use and TB and readiness for treatment: a qualitative study in South Africa. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-3290185. [PMID: 37841852 PMCID: PMC10571641 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3290185/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
Background Unhealthy alcohol use is widespread in South Africa and has been linked to tuberculosis (TB) disease and poor treatment outcomes. This study used qualitative methods to explore the relationship between TB and alcohol use during TB treatment. Methods Focus groups (FGs) were conducted with 34 participants who had previous or current drugsusceptible TB and self-reported current alcohol use. Eight interviews were conducted with healthcare workers who provide TB services in Worcester, South Africa. Results In this rural setting, heavy episodic drinking is normalized and perceived to be related to TB transmission and decreased adherence to TB medication. Both healthcare workers and FG participants recommended the introduction of universal screening, brief interventions, and referral to specialized care for unhealthy alcohol use. However, participants also discussed barriers to the provision of these services, such as limited awareness of the link between alcohol and TB. Healthcare workers also specified resource constraints while FG participants or patients mentioned widespread stigma towards people with alcohol concerns. Both FG participants and health providers would benefit from education on the relationship between TB and unhealthy alcohol use as well and had specific recommendations about interventions for alcohol use reduction. Healthcare workers also suggested that community health worker-delivered interventions could support access to and engagement in both TB and alcohol-related services. Conclusion Findings support strengthening accessible, specialized services for the identification and provision of interventions and psychosocial services for unhealthy alcohol use among those with TB.
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Hahn JA, Ngabirano C, Fatch R, Emenyonu NI, Cheng DM, Adong J, Tumwegamire A, Terrault NA, Linas BP, Jacobson KR, Muyindike WR. Safety and tolerability of isoniazid preventive therapy for tuberculosis for persons with HIV with and without alcohol use. AIDS 2023; 37:1535-1543. [PMID: 37260251 PMCID: PMC10355800 DOI: 10.1097/qad.0000000000003613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Isoniazid (INH) preventive therapy is recommended to prevent tuberculosis (TB) disease for persons with HIV (PWH), except for those with regular and heavy alcohol consumption, due to hepatotoxicity concerns. We aimed to quantify the incidence of severe INH-related toxicity among PWH with and without recent alcohol consumption. DESIGN A prospective study of PWH receiving INH. METHODS We included PWH in southwest Uganda with recent (prior 3 months) ( n = 200) or no (prior year) self-reported alcohol consumption ( n = 101), on antiretroviral therapy, TB infected (≥5 mm on tuberculin skin test), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) 2× or less the upper limit of normal (ULN). Grade 3+ INH-related toxicity was ALT or AST at least 5× the ULN or severe symptoms; we stopped IPT upon detection. Grade 2 INH-related toxicity was ALT or AST 2-5× the ULN or moderate symptoms. RESULTS The cumulative incidence of Grade 3+ INH-related toxicity was 8.3% [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 5.4-12.0]; all resolved after INH cessation. Incidence was 6.0% (95% CI 3.1-10.2) among those reporting recent alcohol use and 12.9% (95% CI 7.0-21.0) among those reporting no prior year alcohol use. We found no differences by baseline phosphatidylethanol-confirmed alcohol severity. The cumulative incidence of Grade 2 toxicities (without Grade 3+) was 21.7% (95% CI 17.0-27.1); 25.0% (95% CI 19.0-31.8) among those with recent alcohol use and 14.8% (95% CI 8.1-23.9) among those with no prior year alcohol use. CONCLUSION Alcohol use does not appear to increase risk for serious INH-related toxicity among PWH without significant liver enzyme elevations at baseline (≤2x ULN).
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith A. Hahn
- Department of Medicine
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Christine Ngabirano
- Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda
| | | | | | - Debbie M. Cheng
- School of Public Health, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Julian Adong
- Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda
| | - Adah Tumwegamire
- Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda
| | - Norah A. Terrault
- Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
| | - Benjamin P. Linas
- Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Karen R. Jacobson
- Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Winnie R. Muyindike
- Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda
- Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Mbarara, Uganda
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Rafiemanesh H, Shadloo B, Amin-Esmaeili M, Rahimi Y, Gholami J, Rahimi-Movaghar A. Prevalence of Tuberculosis among People Who Use Drugs in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. ADDICTION & HEALTH 2023; 15:219-227. [PMID: 38026719 PMCID: PMC10658100 DOI: 10.34172/ahj.2023.1399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
Background Drug use, especially injecting drug use, is associated with a higher risk of tuberculosis (TB). This study aimed to systematically review the prevalence of TB among people who use drugs (PWUD) in Iran. Methods A systematic search was conducted in international and national databases. All studies that provided data on the prevalence of TB among PWUD based on screening tests and diagnosis from 1990 up to August 2019 were assessed. Meta-analysis was performed on the prevalence of active TB among people who inject drugs (PWID). Findings Overall, nine studies were included. The studies were carried out from 1994 to 2012 in seven out of the 31 provinces of Iran. Seven studies provided data on the prevalence of TB diagnosis among 1087 PWID. The pooled prevalence of TB diagnosis was 10.1% (95% CI: 4.5, 15.8) in studies carried out in hospitals and 0.54% (95% CI: 0.04, 1.04) in other settings. Conclusion The present review suggests an approximately 40 times higher prevalence of TB among PWID compared to the general population. However, most of the included studies were conducted on a subpopulation of drug users, and caution should be exercised when generalizing the findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hosein Rafiemanesh
- Non-communicable Diseases Research Center, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran
| | - Behrang Shadloo
- Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Masoumeh Amin-Esmaeili
- Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA
| | - Yekta Rahimi
- Student Research Committee, School of Public Health and Safety, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Jaleh Gholami
- Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Afarin Rahimi-Movaghar
- Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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Liu Y, Lin Y, Sun Y, Thekkur P, Cheng C, Li Y, Shi Y, Jiang J, Liao J, Nie C, Sun W, Liang C, Zhang X, Liu S, Ma Y, Berger SD, Satyanarayana S, Kumar AMV, Khogali M, Zachariah R, Golub JE, Li L, Harries AD. Managing Comorbidities, Determinants and Disability at Start and End of TB Treatment under Routine Program Conditions in China. Trop Med Infect Dis 2023; 8:341. [PMID: 37505637 PMCID: PMC10383887 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed8070341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Revised: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Many patients with tuberculosis (TB) have comorbidities, risk determinants and disability that co-exist at diagnosis, during and after TB treatment. We conducted an observational cohort study in 11 health facilities in China to assess under routine program conditions (i) the burden of these problems at the start and end of TB treatment and (ii) whether referral mechanisms for further care were functional. There were 603 patients registered with drug-susceptible TB who started TB treatment: 84% were symptomatic, 14% had diabetes, 14% had high blood pressure, 19% smoked cigarettes, 10% drank excess alcohol and in 45% the 6 min walking test (6MWT) was abnormal. Five patients were identified with mental health disorders. There were 586 (97%) patients who successfully completed TB treatment six months later. Of these, 18% were still symptomatic, 12% had diabetes (the remainder with diabetes failed to complete treatment), 5% had high blood pressure, 5% smoked cigarettes, 1% drank excess alcohol and 25% had an abnormal 6MWT. Referral mechanisms for the care of comorbidities and determinants worked well except for mental health and pulmonary rehabilitation for disability. There is need for more programmatic-related studies in other countries to build the evidence base for care of TB-related conditions and disability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhong Liu
- Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, No. 9 Beiguan Ave, Tongzhou, Beijing 101149, China; (Y.L.); (Y.S.); (L.L.)
- Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing 101149, China
| | - Yan Lin
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
| | - Yuxian Sun
- Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, No. 9 Beiguan Ave, Tongzhou, Beijing 101149, China; (Y.L.); (Y.S.); (L.L.)
- Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing 101149, China
| | - Pruthu Thekkur
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
- The Union South-East Asia Office, C-6 Qutub Institutional Area, New Delhi 110016, India
| | - Changhao Cheng
- Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital, No. 28 Baofengyilu, Qiaokou, Wuhan 430000, China;
| | - Yuecui Li
- The First People’s Hospital of Yongkang, No. 599 Jinshan West Road, Yongkang 321300, China;
| | - Yunzhen Shi
- Dongyang People’s Hospital, No. 60 Wuning West Road, Dongyang 322100, China;
| | - Jun Jiang
- The Third People’s Hospital of Yichang City, No. 32 Gangyaolu, Yichang 443000, China;
| | - Jiong Liao
- The People’s Hospital of Laiban, No. 159 Pangudadao, Laiban 546100, China;
| | - Chuangui Nie
- Xiangyang Institute of Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, No. 20 Xinhuala, Xiangyang 441000, China;
| | - Wenyan Sun
- Ezhou Third Hospital, No. 16 Minxin West Road, Ezhou 436000, China;
| | - Chengyuan Liang
- Baise City People’s Hospital, No. 8 Chengxianglu, Youjiang, Baise 533000, China;
| | - Xiaojuan Zhang
- Zhongwei People’s Hospital, Gulouxijie, Zhongwei 755000, China;
| | - Sang Liu
- Guangxi Chest Hospital, No. 8 Yangjiaoshanlu, Yufeng, Liuzhou 545000, China;
| | - Yan Ma
- The People’s Hospital of Tongxin, Xueyuanlu, Tongxi, Yuhaizhen 751100, China;
| | - Selma Dar Berger
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
| | - Srinath Satyanarayana
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
- The Union South-East Asia Office, C-6 Qutub Institutional Area, New Delhi 110016, India
| | - Ajay M. V. Kumar
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
- The Union South-East Asia Office, C-6 Qutub Institutional Area, New Delhi 110016, India
- Yenepoya Medical College, Yenepoya (Deemed to be University), Mangalore 575018, India
| | - Mohammed Khogali
- Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain 17666, United Arab Emirates;
| | - Rony Zachariah
- UNICEF, UNDP, World Bank, World Health Organization, Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR), Avenue Appia 20, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland;
| | - Jonathan E. Golub
- Johns Hopkins Center for Tuberculosis, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA;
| | - Liang Li
- Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, No. 9 Beiguan Ave, Tongzhou, Beijing 101149, China; (Y.L.); (Y.S.); (L.L.)
- Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute, Beijing 101149, China
| | - Anthony D. Harries
- International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2 Rue Jean Lantier, 75001 Paris, France; (Y.L.); (P.T.); (S.D.B.); (S.S.); (A.M.V.K.)
- Department of Clinical Research, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK
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Kerkhoff AD, Mwamba C, Pry JM, Kagujje M, Nyangu S, Mateyo K, Sanjase N, Chilukutu L, Christopoulos KA, Muyoyeta M, Sharma A. A mixed methods study on men's and women's tuberculosis care journeys in Lusaka, Zambia-Implications for gender-tailored tuberculosis health promotion and case finding strategies. PLOS GLOBAL PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 3:e0001372. [PMID: 37327200 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Men and women with undiagnosed tuberculosis (TB) in high burden countries may have differential factors influencing their healthcare seeking behaviors and access to TB services, which can result in delayed diagnoses and increase TB-related morbidity and mortality. A convergent, parallel, mixed-methods study design was used to explore and evaluate TB care engagement among adults (≥18 years) with newly diagnosed, microbiologically-confirmed TB attending three public health facilities in Lusaka, Zambia. Quantitative structured surveys characterized the TB care pathway (time to initial care-seeking, diagnosis, and treatment initiation) and collected information on factors influencing care engagement. Multinomial multivariable logistic regression was used to determine predicted probabilities of TB health-seeking behaviors and determinants of care engagement. Qualitative in-depth interviews (IDIs; n = 20) were conducted and analyzed using a hybrid approach to identify barriers and facilitators to TB care engagement by gender. Overall, 400 TB patients completed a structured survey, of which 275 (68.8%) and 125 (31.3%) were men and women, respectively. Men were more likely to be unmarried (39.3% and 27.2%), have a higher median daily income (50 and 30 Zambian Kwacha [ZMW]), alcohol use disorder (70.9% [AUDIT-C score ≥4] and 31.2% [AUDIT-C score ≥3]), and a history of smoking (63.3% and 8.8%), while women were more likely to be religious (96.8% and 70.8%) and living with HIV (70.4% and 36.0%). After adjusting for potential confounders, the probability of delayed health-seeking ≥4 weeks after symptom onset did not differ significantly by gender (44.0% and 36.2%, p = 0.14). While the top reasons for delayed healthcare-seeking were largely similar by gender, men were more likely to report initially perceiving their symptoms as not being serious (94.8% and 78.7%, p = 0.032), while women were more likely to report not knowing the symptoms of TB before their diagnosis (89.5% and 74.4%; p = 0.007) and having a prior bad healthcare experience (26.4% and 9.9%; p = 0.036). Notably, women had a higher probability of receiving TB diagnosis ≥2 weeks after initial healthcare seeking (56.5% and 41.0%, p = 0.007). While men and women reported similar acceptability of health-information sources, they emphasized different trusted messengers. Also, men had a higher adjusted probability of stating that no one influenced their health-related decision making (37.9% and 28.3%, p = 0.001). In IDIs, men recommended TB testing sites at convenient community locations, while women endorsed an incentivized, peer-based, case-finding approach. Sensitization and TB testing strategies at bars and churches were highlighted as promising approaches to reach men and women, respectively. This mixed-methods study found important differences between men and women with TB in Zambia. These differences suggest the need for gender-tailored TB health promotion, including addressing harmful alcohol use and smoking among men, and sensitizing HCWs to prolonged delays in TB diagnosis among women, and also using gender-specific approaches as part of community-based, active case-finding strategies to improve TB diagnosis in high burden settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew D Kerkhoff
- Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases and Global Medicine Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Chanda Mwamba
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Jake M Pry
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
- Division of Epidemiology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Mary Kagujje
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Sarah Nyangu
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Kondwelani Mateyo
- Department of Internal Medicine, University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Nsala Sanjase
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | - Katerina A Christopoulos
- Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases and Global Medicine Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Monde Muyoyeta
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Anjali Sharma
- Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
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Duchen D, Vergara C, Thio CL, Kundu P, Chatterjee N, Thomas DL, Wojcik GL, Duggal P. Pathogen exposure misclassification can bias association signals in GWAS of infectious diseases when using population-based common control subjects. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:336-348. [PMID: 36649706 PMCID: PMC9943744 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2022.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have been performed to identify host genetic factors for a range of phenotypes, including for infectious diseases. The use of population-based common control subjects from biobanks and extensive consortia is a valuable resource to increase sample sizes in the identification of associated loci with minimal additional expense. Non-differential misclassification of the outcome has been reported when the control subjects are not well characterized, which often attenuates the true effect size. However, for infectious diseases the comparison of affected subjects to population-based common control subjects regardless of pathogen exposure can also result in selection bias. Through simulated comparisons of pathogen-exposed cases and population-based common control subjects, we demonstrate that not accounting for pathogen exposure can result in biased effect estimates and spurious genome-wide significant signals. Further, the observed association can be distorted depending upon strength of the association between a locus and pathogen exposure and the prevalence of pathogen exposure. We also used a real data example from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genetic consortium comparing HCV spontaneous clearance to persistent infection with both well-characterized control subjects and population-based common control subjects from the UK Biobank. We find biased effect estimates for known HCV clearance-associated loci and potentially spurious HCV clearance associations. These findings suggest that the choice of control subjects is especially important for infectious diseases or outcomes that are conditional upon environmental exposures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan Duchen
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Candelaria Vergara
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Chloe L Thio
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Prosenjit Kundu
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Nilanjan Chatterjee
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - David L Thomas
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Genevieve L Wojcik
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Priya Duggal
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
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11
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Baluku JB, Ronald O, Bagasha P, Okello E, Bongomin F. Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in active tuberculosis in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sci Rep 2022; 12:16354. [PMID: 36175540 PMCID: PMC9523035 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20833-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
People with tuberculosis (TB) are at risk of major adverse cardiovascular events. We estimated the prevalence of cardiovascular risk (CVR) factors among people with active TB in Africa. This was a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies from Africa. We searched EMBASE, MEDLINE through PubMed, Web of Science, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, mRCTs, Clinical trials.gov, and International Clinical Trials Registry Platform from inception to 31st December 2021. Among 110 eligible studies, 79 (238,316 participants) were included in the meta-analysis for smoking, 67 (52,793 participants) for current alcohol use, 30 (31,450 participants) for hazardous alcohol use, 51 (37,879 participants) for diabetes mellitus (DM), 19 (18,211 participants) for hypertension and 18 (13,910 participants) for obesity. The pooled prevalence was 26.0% (95% confidence interval 22.0–29.0) for smoking, 30.0% (25.0–35.0) for any current alcohol use, 21.0% (17.0–26.0) for hazardous alcohol use, 14.0% (9.0–18.0) for hypertension, 7.0% (6.0–9.0) for DM, and 4.0% (2.0–5.0) for obesity. Cost-effective strategies are needed to screen for CVR factors among people with active TB in Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Baruch Baluku
- Division of Pulmonology, Kiruddu National Referral Hospital, PO Box 26343, Kampala, Uganda. .,Makerere University Lung Institute, Kampala, Uganda.
| | - Olum Ronald
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Peace Bagasha
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | | | - Felix Bongomin
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda.,Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Gulu, Uganda
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12
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Data Mining for ICD-10 Admission Diagnoses Preceding Tuberculosis within 1 Year among Non-HIV and Non-Diabetes Patients. Trop Med Infect Dis 2022; 7:tropicalmed7040061. [PMID: 35448836 PMCID: PMC9027130 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed7040061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 04/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Delayed diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) increases mortality and extends the duration of disease transmission. This study aimed to identify significant ICD-10 admission diagnoses preceding TB. All hospital electronic medical records from fiscal year 2015 to 2020 in the Songkhla Province, Thailand were retrieved. After excluding diabetes and HIV patients, a case-control analysis was performed. Exposures of interest were ICD-10 diagnoses on admissions 1–12 months prior to the visit during which TB was detected. Incident cases of respiratory tuberculosis (A15.0–A16.9) that had been admitted with at least one such exposure were chosen. For every case, controls were retrieved from weekly concurrent OPD patients who had the same 10-year interval of age, sex, and preceding admission and discharge week as the case. The 10 most common comorbidities during hospitalization preceding TB with their relative odds ratios (RORs) and 95% confidence intervals were identified. These included five significant exposures related to lower respiratory infection without adequate TB investigation. Significant RORs ranged from 3.10 (unspecified pneumonia) to 34.69 (hemoptysis). Full TB investigation was not performed due to problems with health insurance. In conclusion, the physicians should be informed about this pitfall, and the insurance system should be revised accordingly.
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13
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Meza V, Arnold J, Díaz LA, Ayala Valverde M, Idalsoaga F, Ayares G, Devuni D, Arab JP. Alcohol Consumption: Medical Implications, the Liver and Beyond. Alcohol Alcohol 2022; 57:283-291. [PMID: 35333295 DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agac013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Revised: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Alcohol consumption represents a major factor of morbidity and mortality, with a wide range of adverse medical implications that practically affect every organ system. It is the fifth major cause of deaths in men and women and causes up to 139 million disability-adjusted life years. Solid evidence places the risk as undoubtedly correlated to the length of time and amount of alcohol consumption. While alcohol-related liver disease represents one of the most studied and well-known consequences of alcohol use, the term itself embodies a wide spectrum of progressive disease stages that are responsible for almost half of the liver-related mortality worldwide. We discuss the staged alcohol-related fatty liver, alcohol-related steatohepatitis and, finally, fibrosis and cirrhosis, which ultimately may end up in a hepatocellular carcinoma. Other comorbidities such as acute and chronic pancreatitis; central nervous system; cardiovascular, respiratory and endocrine system; renal disease; urological pathologies; type 2 diabetes mellitus and even infectious diseases are reviewed in their relation to alcohol consumption. This article reviews the impact of alcohol use on different systems and organs, summarizing available evidence regarding its medical implications. It examines current basic and clinical data regarding mechanisms to highlight factors and processes that may be targetable to improve patient outcomes. Although alcohol use is a part of many cultural and social practices, as healthcare providers we must identify populations at high risk of alcohol abuse, educate patients about the potential alcohol-related harm and provide appropriate treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Víctor Meza
- Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Jorge Arnold
- Departamento de Gastroenterología, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile
| | - Luis Antonio Díaz
- Departamento de Gastroenterología, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile
| | | | - Francisco Idalsoaga
- Departamento de Gastroenterología, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile
| | - Gustavo Ayares
- Departamento de Gastroenterología, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile
| | - Deepika Devuni
- Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, UMass Chan Medical School l, Worcester, MA 01655, USA
| | - Juan Pablo Arab
- Departamento de Gastroenterología, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8330024, Chile
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14
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Li H, Chee CBE, Geng T, Pan A, Koh WP. Joint Associations of Multiple Lifestyle Factors With Risk of Active Tuberculosis in the Population: The Singapore Chinese Health Study. Clin Infect Dis 2021; 75:213-220. [PMID: 34958367 PMCID: PMC9410721 DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciab935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Little is known about the joint associations of multiple lifestyle risk factors including smoking, low body mass index, physical inactivity, alcohol consumption, and low diet quality with risk of active tuberculosis. METHODS We analyzed data from the Singapore Chinese Health Study, a prospective cohort study of 63 257 Chinese adults aged 45-74 years enrolled between 1993 and 1998. Incident cases of active tuberculosis were identified via linkage with the National TB Registry through 31 December 2016. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to compute hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of tuberculosis risk in relation to the combined scores of lifestyle risk factors. RESULTS Compared with participants with none of the risk factors, the adjusted HRs (95% CI) of active tuberculosis for participants with 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 risk factors were 1.24 (1.02-1.51), 1.84 (1.51-2.23), 2.52 (2.03-3.14), 4.07 (3.07-5.41), and 9.04 (5.44-15.02), respectively (Ptrend < .0001). The HR for those with 5 factors was ~1.5 times the product of individual risk estimates from the 5 factors on a multiplicative scale. The stepwise increase in risk of active tuberculosis with increasing number of lifestyle risk factors was significantly stronger in participants with diabetes than their counterparts without diabetes at recruitment (Pinteraction = .01). CONCLUSIONS Multiple lifestyle risk factors were associated with risk of active tuberculosis in a synergistic manner. Our findings highlight the importance of public health programs and interventions targeting these factors simultaneously to reduce the tuberculosis burden among the general population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huiqi Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei Province, China
| | - Cynthia B E Chee
- Singapore Tuberculosis Control Unit, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore
| | - Tingting Geng
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei Province, China
| | | | - Woon Puay Koh
- Correspondence: W.-P. Koh, Healthy Longevity Translational Research Program, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 5 Science Drive 2, Singapore ()
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15
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Wood S, Harrison SE, Judd N, Bellis MA, Hughes K, Jones A. The impact of behavioural risk factors on communicable diseases: a systematic review of reviews. BMC Public Health 2021; 21:2110. [PMID: 34789209 PMCID: PMC8596356 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-021-12148-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has highlighted that individuals with behavioural risk factors commonly associated with non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as smoking, harmful alcohol use, obesity, and physical inactivity, are more likely to experience severe symptoms from COVID-19. These risk factors have been shown to increase the risk of NCDs, but less is known about their broader influence on communicable diseases. Taking a wide focus on a range of common communicable diseases, this review aimed to synthesise research examining the impact of behavioural risk factors commonly associated with NCDs on risks of contracting, or having more severe outcomes from, communicable diseases. Methods Literature searches identified systematic reviews and meta-analyses that examined the association between behavioural risk factors (alcohol, smoking, illicit drug use, physical inactivity, obesity and poor diet) and the contraction/severity of common communicable diseases, including infection or associated pathogens. An a priori, prospectively registered protocol was followed (PROSPERO; registration number CRD42020223890). Results Fifty-three systematic reviews were included, of which 36 were also meta-analyses. Reviews focused on: tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis C virus, hepatitis B virus, invasive bacterial diseases, pneumonia, influenza, and COVID-19. Twenty-one reviews examined the association between behavioural risk factors and communicable disease contraction and 35 examined their association with communicable disease outcomes (three examined their association with both contraction and outcomes). Fifty out of 53 reviews (94%) concluded that at least one of the behavioural risk factors studied increased the risk of contracting or experiencing worse health outcomes from a communicable disease. Across all reviews, effect sizes, where calculated, ranged from 0.83 to 8.22. Conclusions Behavioural risk factors play a significant role in the risk of contracting and experiencing more severe outcomes from communicable diseases. Prevention of communicable diseases is likely to be most successful if it involves the prevention of behavioural risk factors commonly associated with NCDs. These findings are important for understanding risks associated with communicable disease, and timely, given the COVID-19 pandemic and the need for improvements in future pandemic preparedness. Addressing behavioural risk factors should be an important part of work to build resilience against any emerging and future epidemics and pandemics. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-021-12148-y.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Wood
- Policy and International Health, World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Investment for Health and Well-being, Public Health Wales, Wrexham, UK
| | - Sophie E Harrison
- Public Health Collaborating Unit, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Bangor University, Wrexham, UK.,Institute for Applied Human Physiology, School of Human and Behavioural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, UK
| | - Natasha Judd
- Policy and International Health, World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Investment for Health and Well-being, Public Health Wales, Wrexham, UK.,Public Health Collaborating Unit, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Bangor University, Wrexham, UK
| | - Mark A Bellis
- Policy and International Health, World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Investment for Health and Well-being, Public Health Wales, Wrexham, UK. .,Public Health Collaborating Unit, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Bangor University, Wrexham, UK.
| | - Karen Hughes
- Policy and International Health, World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Investment for Health and Well-being, Public Health Wales, Wrexham, UK.,Public Health Collaborating Unit, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Bangor University, Wrexham, UK
| | - Andrew Jones
- Health Protection and Screening Services, Public Health Wales, Cardiff, UK
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16
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Is It Feasible to Conduct Post-Tuberculosis Assessments at the End of Tuberculosis Treatment under Routine Programmatic Conditions in China? Trop Med Infect Dis 2021; 6:tropicalmed6030164. [PMID: 34564548 PMCID: PMC8482211 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed6030164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2021] [Revised: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
There is growing evidence that a substantial proportion of people who complete anti-tuberculosis treatment experience significant morbidity and mortality which can negatively affect their quality of life. It is suggested that national tuberculosis programs conduct end-of-treatment assessments, but whether this is feasible is currently not known. We therefore assessed whether tuberculosis program staff could assess functional and general health status of patients at the end of treatment in five TB clinics in four provinces in China. There were 115 patients, aged 14–82 years, who completed anti-tuberculosis treatment and a post-TB assessment. There were 54 (47%) patients who continued to have symptoms, the commonest being cough, dyspnea and fatigue. Symptom continuation was significantly more common in the 22 patients with diabetes (p = 0.027) and the 12 patients previously treated for TB (p = 0.008). There were 12 (10%) current smokers, an abnormal chest X-ray was found in 106 (92%) patients and distance walked in the 6-min walking test (6MWT) ranged from 30–750 m (mean 452 ± 120); 24 (21%) patients walked less than 400 m. Time taken to perform the post-TB assessment, including the 6MWT, ranged from 8–45 min (mean 21 ± 8 min). In 98% of the completed questionnaires, health workers stated that conducting post-TB assessments was feasible and useful. This study shows that post-TB assessments can be conducted under routine programmatic conditions and that there is significant morbidity that needs to be addressed.
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17
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Basham CA, Karim ME, Cook VJ, Patrick DM, Johnston JC. Post-tuberculosis mortality risk among immigrants to British Columbia, Canada, 1985-2015: a time-dependent Cox regression analysis of linked immigration, public health, and vital statistics data. CANADIAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH = REVUE CANADIENNE DE SANTE PUBLIQUE 2021; 112:132-141. [PMID: 32666352 PMCID: PMC7851220 DOI: 10.17269/s41997-020-00345-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To compare non-tuberculosis (non-TB)-cause mortality risk overall and cause-specific mortality risks within the immigrant population of British Columbia (BC) with and without TB diagnosis through time-dependent Cox regressions. METHODS All people immigrating to BC during 1985-2015 (N = 1,030,873) were included with n = 2435 TB patients, and the remaining as non-TB controls. Outcomes were time-to-mortality for all non-TB causes, respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and injuries/poisonings, and were ascertained using ICD-coded vital statistics data. Cox regressions were used, with a time-varying exposure variable for TB diagnosis. RESULTS The non-TB-cause mortality hazard ratio (HR) was 4.01 (95% CI 3.57-4.51) with covariate-adjusted HR of 1.69 (95% CI 1.50-1.91). Cause-specific covariate-adjusted mortality risk was elevated for respiratory diseases (aHR = 2.96; 95% CI 2.18-4.00), cardiovascular diseases (aHR = 1.63; 95% CI 1.32-2.02), cancers (aHR = 1.40; 95% CI 1.13-1.75), and injuries/poisonings (aHR = 1.85; 95% CI 1.25-2.72). CONCLUSIONS In any given year, if an immigrant to BC was diagnosed with TB, their risk of non-TB mortality was 69% higher than if they were not diagnosed with TB. Healthcare providers should consider multiple potential threats to the long-term health of TB patients during and after TB treatment. TB guidelines in high-income settings should address TB survivor health.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Andrew Basham
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada.
| | - Mohammad Ehsanul Karim
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcomes Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Victoria J Cook
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - David M Patrick
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - James C Johnston
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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18
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Cola JP, Prado TND, Sales CMM, Maciel ELN. Family Health Strategy and determinants of directly observed treatment for tuberculosis in Brazil: a cross-sectional study with surveillance system data, 2014-2016. EPIDEMIOLOGIA E SERVIÇOS DE SAÚDE 2020; 29:e2020284. [PMID: 33295589 DOI: 10.1590/s1679-49742020000500010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2020] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To assess the association between tuberculosis determinants and performance of directly observed treatment (DOT) under different levels of Family Health Strategy (FHS) coverage in Brazil. METHODS This was a cross-sectional study using data on tuberculosis cases notified between 2014 and 2016 on the Notifiable Health Conditions Information System, as well as data on FHS coverage in the municipality of residence. Logistic regression was used. RESULTS 177,626 individuals were included; being an alcohol user (odds ratio (OR) 1.09 - 95% confidence interval % [95%CI] 1.03;1.16), being deprived of liberty (OR=1.21 - 95%CI 1.12;1.32) and positive sputum smear microscopy (OR=1.15 - 95%CI 1.10;1.21) increased the chances of DOT being performed . When stratified by FHS coverage, these associations became weak in the highest stratum of coverage. CONCLUSION DOT being performed was associated with determinants of tuberculosis. However, association was not confirmed among residents in municipalities with higher FHS coverage.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Paulo Cola
- Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Laboratório de Epidemiologia, Vitória, ES, Brasil
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19
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Bhargava A, Bhargava M, Juneja A. Social determinants of tuberculosis: context, framework, and the way forward to ending TB in India. Expert Rev Respir Med 2020; 15:867-883. [PMID: 33016808 DOI: 10.1080/17476348.2021.1832469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Social determinants are involved in the causation of TB and its adverse outcomes. This review was conducted to evolve a framework for action on social determinants with special reference to India in the context of the new END TB strategy. AREAS COVERED We reviewed the social context of TB in India as a neglected disease of the poor, its emergence in epidemic form in the colonial period, and the factors that resulted in its perpetuation and expansion in post-independence India. We examined the role of social determinants in two key pathways - the pathway of TB causation and its outcomes, and the care cascade for patients with TB, and its consequences. We reviewed the most important social determinants of TB including poverty, membership of certain castes and indigenous population, undernutrition and poor access to healthcare, especially in rural areas. EXPERT OPINION We suggest that TB elimination will require an optimal mix of enhanced biomedical and social interventions. TB elimination strategy in India needs a pro-poor model of patient - centered care inclusive of nutritional, psycho-social and financial support, universal health coverage, and social protection; and convergence with multi-sectoral efforts to address poverty, undernutrition, unsafe housing, and indoor pollution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anurag Bhargava
- Department of General Medicine, Yenepoya Medical College, (Yenepoya Deemed to Be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, India.,Center for Nutrition Studies, (Yenepoya Deemed to Be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, India.,Department of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Madhavi Bhargava
- Center for Nutrition Studies, (Yenepoya Deemed to Be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, India.,Department of Community Medicine, (Yenepoya Deemed to Be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Anika Juneja
- Center for Nutrition Studies, (Yenepoya Deemed to Be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, India
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20
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The Dynamics of Clinical and Laboratory Data in Patients with Firstly Diagnosed Pulmonary Tuberculosis and Alcohol Consumption, and the Possibility of Predicting the Effectiveness of Treatment. Fam Med 2020. [DOI: 10.30841/2307-5112.3.2020.211861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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21
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Basham CA, Smith SJ, Romanowski K, Johnston JC. Cardiovascular morbidity and mortality among persons diagnosed with tuberculosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0235821. [PMID: 32649721 PMCID: PMC7351210 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0235821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction The emerging epidemiological evidence of increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among persons diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) has not been systematically reviewed to date. Our aim was to review the existing epidemiological evidence for elevated risk of CVD morbidity and mortality among persons diagnosed with TB compared to controls. Materials and methods EMBASE, MEDLINE, and Cochrane databases were searched (inception to January 2020) for terms related to “tuberculosis” and “cardiovascular diseases”. Inclusion criteria: trial, cohort, or case-control study design; patient population included persons diagnosed with TB infection or disease; relative risk (RR) estimate and confidence interval reported for CVD morbidity or mortality compared to suitable controls. Exclusion criteria: no TB or CVD outcome definition; duplicate study; non-English abstract; non-human participants. Two reviewers screened studies, applied ROBINS-I tool to assess risk of bias, and extracted data independently. Random effects meta-analysis estimated a pooled RR of CVD morbidity and mortality for persons diagnosed with TB compared to controls. Results 6,042 articles were identified, 244 full texts were reviewed, and 16 were included, meta-analyzing subsets of 8 studies’ RR estimates. We estimated a pooled RR of 1.51 (95% CI: 1.16–1.97) for major adverse cardiac events among those diagnosed with TB compared to non-TB controls (p = 0.0024). A ‘serious’ pooled risk of bias was found across studies with between-study heterogeneity (I2 = 75.3%). Conclusions TB appears to be a marker for increased CVD risk; however, the literature is limited and is accompanied by serious risk of confounding bias and evidence of publication bias. Further retrospective and prospective studies are needed. Pending this evidence, best practice may be to consider persons diagnosed with TB at higher risk of CVD as a precautionary measure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Andrew Basham
- Provincial TB Services, British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, Canada
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Sarah J. Smith
- Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
| | - Kamila Romanowski
- Provincial TB Services, British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - James C. Johnston
- Provincial TB Services, British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, Canada
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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22
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Xia L, Zhu S, Chen C, Rao ZY, Xia Y, Wang DX, Zhang PR, He J, Zhang JY, Wu JL. Spatio-temporal analysis of socio-economic characteristics for pulmonary tuberculosis in Sichuan province of China, 2006-2015. BMC Infect Dis 2020; 20:433. [PMID: 32571231 PMCID: PMC7310234 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-020-05150-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The disease burden caused by pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) in Sichuan province still persisted at a high level, and large spatial variances were presented across regional distribution disparities. The socio-economic factors were suspected to affect the population of TB notification, we aimed to describe TB case notification rate (CNR) and identify which factors influence TB epidemic are necessary for the prevention and control of the disease in Sichuan province. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional study and an ecological spatial analysis was conducted to quantify the presence and location of spatial clusters of TB by the Moran’s I index and examined these patterns with socio-economic risk factors by hierarchical Bayesian spatio-temporal model. Results A total of 630,009 pulmonary TB cases were notified from 2006 to 2015 in 181 counties of Sichuan province. The CNR decreased year by year since 2007, from 88.70 to 61.37 per 100,000 persons. The spatial heterogeneities of CNR were observed during the study periods. Global Moran’s I index varied from 0.23 to 0.44 with all P-value < 0.001. The Bayesian spatio-temporal model with parametric spatio-temporal interactions was chosen as the best model according to the minimum of Deviance Information Criterion (DIC)(19,379.01), and in which the quadratic form of time was taken. The proportion of age group and education year were all associated with CNR after adjusting the spatial effect, temporal effect and spatio-temporal interactions. TB CNR increased by 10.2% [95% credible interval (CI): 6.7–13.7%] for every 1-standard-deviation increase in proportion of age group and decreased by 23% (95% CI: 13.7–32.7%) for every 1-standard-deviation increase in education year. Conclusions There were spatial clusters of TB notification rate in Sichuan province from 2006 to 2015, and heavy TB burden was mainly attributed to aging and low socioeconomic status including poor education. Thus, it is more important to pay more attention to the elderly population and improve socioeconomic status including promoting education level in Sichuan province to reduce the TB burden.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lan Xia
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Sui Zhu
- Department of Statistics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Jinan University, No. 601, West of Huangpu Road, Guangzhou, 510632, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Chuang Chen
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Zheng-Yuan Rao
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Yong Xia
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Dan-Xia Wang
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Pei-Ru Zhang
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Jinge He
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Ju-Ying Zhang
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Sichuan University, No.17 Section 3, Renmin South Road, Chengdu, 610044, Sichuan Province, China.
| | - Jian-Lin Wu
- Department of Tuberculosis, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No.6 middle school road, Wuhou district, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China.
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IMMUNE STATUS OF PATIENTS WITH LUNG TUBERCULOSIS AND ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION. EUREKA: HEALTH SCIENCES 2020. [DOI: 10.21303/2504-5679.2020.001177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Tuberculosis is a great medical and social problem. An important risk factor for tuberculosis progress is the systematic use of alcohol. The relationship between alcohol intake and TB has been clear after numerous studies and meta-analyzes. However, there are still open questions about whether alcohol is the direct cause of TB development, which doses of alcohol have the greatest trigger value in progress of TB process, what kind of immunological reactions are significantly associated with alcohol intake and what immune background can determining role of alcohol in progression of TB infection. The features of the immune response in TB patients with different value of alcohol use remain poorly understood.
The aim of the research - to investigate the immune status in patients with firstly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis with various levels of alcohol consumption.
Materials and methods. We selected for participating in the study 102 males with tuberculosis and alcohol consumption. Examination of the patients included: clinical methods, chest X-ray, sputum tests, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and immunological blood analysis.
Results. Patients with tuberculosis and alcohol consumption, have increase inflammatory response: higher level of stab neutrophils, CRP, ESR, as well as phagocyte activity, circulating immune complexes levels and medium molecular weight peptides levels. On the other hand we found decreasing of phagocytic number, index of phagocytosis completeness and differentiation clusters CD2+, CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ of T-lymphocytes` sub-populations. The highest changes were observed in the group of alcohol abusers.
Conclusions. Patients with tuberculosis and alcohol intake, even at low levels of its consumption, have a dysregulation of their immune response. On the one hand, there is an increase of non-specific inflammatory reactions, and on the other - a situation, when antigen-presenting cells cannot adequately to process and present the antigen to phagocytes. This prevents the immune system from responding quickly, correctly evaluating and suppressing foreign agents.
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Erawati M, Andriany M. The Prevalence and Demographic Risk Factors for Latent Tuberculosis Infection (LTBI) Among Healthcare Workers in Semarang, Indonesia. J Multidiscip Healthc 2020; 13:197-206. [PMID: 32110034 PMCID: PMC7038397 DOI: 10.2147/jmdh.s241972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose To determine the prevalence and demographic risk factors for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) among healthcare workers in Semarang, Indonesia. Methods A cross-sectional study involving 195 healthcare workers from 34 primary health centers was conducted from August to October 2019. The relationship between independent variables and dependent variables was analyzed using a multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results The prevalence of LTBI among healthcare workers in this study was 23.6%. Comorbidities were the only risk factor for LTBI identified among other risk factors (OR=3.39, 95% CI: 0.99–11.62, p=0.04). Other demographic factors such as age (OR=0.93, 95% CI: 0.45–1.92, p=0.839), gender (OR=0.79, 95% CI: 0.23–2.72, p=0.708, smoking habits (OR=2.54, 95% CI: 0.52–12.38, p=0.247), and length of work (OR=1.43, 95% CI: 0.70–2.91, p=0.331) were not significant risk factors for LTBI. Conclusion Healthcare workers suffering from comorbidity have a high risk for tuberculosis infection, and should not work in areas where they would be exposed to patients with tuberculosis. Healthcare workers need to apply occupational safety standards during contact with TB patients or specimens to minimize the disease transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meira Erawati
- Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Diponegoro, Semarang, Indonesia
| | - Megah Andriany
- Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Diponegoro, Semarang, Indonesia
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Ragan EJ, Kleinman MB, Sweigart B, Gnatienko N, Parry CD, Horsburgh CR, LaValley MP, Myers B, Jacobson KR. The impact of alcohol use on tuberculosis treatment outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2020; 24:73-82. [PMID: 32005309 PMCID: PMC7491444 DOI: 10.5588/ijtld.19.0080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Alcohol use is associated with increased risk of developing tuberculosis (TB) disease, yet the impact of alcohol use on TB treatment outcomes has not been summarized. We aimed to quantitatively review evidence of the relationship between alcohol use and poor TB treatment outcomes. We conducted a systematic review of PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science (January 1980-May 2018). We categorized studies as having a high- or low-quality alcohol use definition and examined poor treatment outcomes individually and as two aggregated definitions (i.e., including or excluding loss to follow-up [LTFU]). We analyzed drug-susceptible (DS-) and multidrug-resistant (MDR-) TB studies separately. Our systematic review yielded 111 studies reporting alcohol use as a predictor of DS- and MDR-TB treatment outcomes. Alcohol use was associated with increased odds of poor treatment outcomes (i.e., death, treatment failure, and LTFU) in DS (OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.57-2.51) and MDR-TB studies (OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.73-2.32). This association persisted for aggregated poor treatment outcomes excluding LTFU, each individual poor outcome, and across sub-group and sensitivity analyses. Only 19% of studies used high-quality alcohol definitions. Alcohol use significantly increased the risk of poor treatment outcomes in both DS- and MDR-TB patients. This study highlights the need for improved assessment of alcohol use in TB outcomes research and potentially modified treatment guidelines for TB patients who consume alcohol.
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Affiliation(s)
- E J Ragan
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
| | - M B Kleinman
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
| | - B Sweigart
- Department of Biostatistics, Boston University, Boston, MA
| | - N Gnatienko
- Section of General Internal Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - C D Parry
- Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, Department of Psychiatry, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - C R Horsburgh
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, Department of Biostatistics, Boston University, Boston, MA, Department of Global Health, Department of Epidemiology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - M P LaValley
- Department of Biostatistics, Boston University, Boston, MA
| | - B Myers
- Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - K R Jacobson
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
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Self-reported alcohol use in the cystic fibrosis community. J Cyst Fibros 2019; 19:84-90. [PMID: 31303381 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcf.2019.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2018] [Revised: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 06/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Excessive alcohol use (EAU), a harmful pattern of drinking that includes binge drinking and heavy use, occurs in 25% (binge) and 6% (heavy use) of the US population, respectively. Little is known about alcohol use in individuals with cystic fibrosis (CF). The objective of this investigation is to examine alcohol consumption patterns in individuals with CF using a health survey administered from a social media platform. METHODS Individuals with CF, 18 years of age or older, were recruited for participation through social media and internet-based platforms. RESULTS 1135 individuals initially participated in the survey and 84% (n = 952) were eligible and completed the survey. Of the respondents, 77% (n = 729) currently consume alcohol, 18% (n = 171) formerly consumed alcohol, and 5% (n = 52) never consumed alcohol. Amongst the people with CF who currently consume alcohol, 54% (N = 391) met criteria for EAU. Thirty percent of current drinkers experienced symptoms of harmful alcohol use. Of those who met criteria for EAU, 7% wore oxygen, 6% had a lung transplant, 10% had liver disease and 32% had diabetes. Those with EAU reported more hospitalizations than those without EAU [244 (62%) vs 182 (54%), p = .034]. Characteristics associated with EAU after multivariable adjustment included younger age, unmarried status, male gender and younger age at initiation of drinking. CONCLUSION EAU is occurring at a much higher proportion in individuals with CF. A substantial percentage of CF individuals with EAU also have medical co-morbidities. Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment for EAU in CF clinics is warranted.
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Thilagaraj M, Pallikonda Rajasekaran M. An empirical mode decomposition (EMD)-based scheme for alcoholism identification. Pattern Recognit Lett 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.patrec.2019.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Healthcare Workers in Duhok Province: From Screening to Prophylactic Treatment. Trop Med Infect Dis 2019; 4:tropicalmed4020085. [PMID: 31126022 PMCID: PMC6631700 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed4020085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2019] [Revised: 05/17/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at increased risk of infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and, hence, of developing tuberculosis (TB) disease. The aims of this study are to identify the prevalence and determinants of latent TB infection (LTBI) among HCWs in Duhok Province. This is a cross-sectional prospective study conducted during April–July 2018 in different health care facilities of Duhok province. HCWs at multiple levels were selected by a non-systematic random sampling method. Information on demographic and associated risk factors of LTBI were collected by using a standardized questionnaire. Thereafter, all HCWs underwent QuantiFERON Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) assay. HCWs with indeterminate QFT-Plus underwent a Tuberculin Skin Test. HCWs with positive results were further evaluated by smear microscopy investigation and chest X-ray examination. Three hundred ninety-five HCWs were enrolled; 49 (12%) tested positive for LTBI. The mean age of the HCWs was 33.4 ± 9.25 with a female predominance (51.1%). According to the univariate analysis, LTBI was significantly higher among HCWs with the following: age groups ≥ 30 years, alcohol intake, ≥ 11 years of employment, high risk stratification workplaces, and medical doctors. In the multivariate analysis, the age group of 30–39 years (OR = 0.288, 95% CI: 0.105–0.794, p value = 0.016) was the only risk factor associated with LTBI. Further medical investigations did not reveal active TB cases among HCWs with LTBI. With regards to prophylactic treatment, 31 (63.3%) LTBI HCWs accepted the treatment, whereas 18 (36.7%) declined the chemoprophylaxis. Of these 31 HCWs on chemoprophylaxis, 12 (38.7%) received isoniazid (INH) for six months, 17 (54.8%) received INH in combination with rifampicin (RMP) for three months, and two (6.5%) received alternative therapy because of anti-TB drug intolerance. In conclusions, although Iraq is a relatively high TB burden country, the prevalence of LTBI among Duhok HCWs is relatively low. It is important to screen HCWs in Duhok for LTBI, particularly medical doctors, young adults, alcoholics, and those whom had a long duration of employment in high-risk workplaces. The acceptance rate of HCWs with LTBI to chemoprophylaxis was low. Therefore, ensuring medical efforts to educate the healthcare staff particularly, non-professionals are a priority to encourage chemoprophylaxis acceptance.
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