title: High mortality rates in tuberculosis patients in Zomba Hospital, Malawi, during 32 months of follow-up.
abstract: There is little information about long-term follow-up in patients with smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) or extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) who have been treated under routine programme conditions in sub-Saharan Africa. A prospective study was carried out to determine outcome 32 months from start of treatment in an unselected cohort of 827 adults TB inpatients registered at Zomba Hospital, Malawi, in 1 July-31 December 1995. By 32 months, 351 (42%) patients had died. Death rates were 30% (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 25-35%) in 386 patients with smear-positive PTB, 60% (95% CI 53-67%) in 211 patients with smear-negative PTB and 47% (95% CI 40-54%) in 230 patients with EPTB. Of the 793 patients with concordant HIV test results 612 (77%) were HIV seropositive: 47% HIV-positive patients were dead by 32 months compared with 27% HIV-negative patients (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 2.3; 95% CI 1.7-3.1, P < 0.001). Smear-negative PTB patients had the highest death rates during the 32-month follow-up (HR 2.7; 95% CI 2.1-3.5, P < 0.001 compared to smear-positive patients), followed by EPTB patients (HR 1.9; 95% CI 1.5-2.5, P < 0.001 compared to smear-positive patients). When analysis was restricted to after the treatment period had finished (i.e., months 12-32), the differences in mortality were maintained for HIV-serostatus and for types of TB. Low-cost, easy to implement strategies for reducing mortality in HIV-positive TB patients in sub-Saharan Africa (such as the use of trimethoprim-sulphamethoxazole prophylaxis) need to be tested urgently in programme settings.
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Chichiri, Blantyre, Malawi.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kang'ombe
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Harries
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Banda
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Nyangulu
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Whitty
authors.forename: F M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Salaniponi
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Maher
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nunn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D015528:HIV Seroprevalence; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008295:Malawi / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality*; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality
chemical_list: D000995:Antitubercular Agents