title: Comparison of epidemiological, clinical, laboratory and radiological features of hospitalized diabetic and non-diabetic patients with pulmonary tuberculosis at razi hospital in ahvaz.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Diabetes mellitus (DM) due to suppressive effect on cellular immunity can impact on progression of tuberculosis (TB).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of DM on the epidemiological, clinical and para clinical aspects of pulmonary TB.
  
  
  METHODS
  The information of 148 admitted pulmonary TB patients in infectious ward of Razi hospital in Ahvaz from 2009 to 2010 was extracted from their medical files. The patients were divided into two groups as TB with DM (n = 36) and TB without DM (n = 112). The related data on epidemiology, signs, symptoms, radiology and sputum smear examination in both groups were compared in SPSS 16 by using chi squared test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of TB with DM patients was higher TB without DM patients (56.6 ± 12.7 vs. 44.8 ± 18.3; respectively, P = 0.006). Whereas cough, night sweating, fever and weigh loss was not statistically different, sputum, hemoptysis and dyspnea was more prominent in TB with DM (69.4%, 33.4%, 44.5% vs. 36.6%, 9.8%, 20.5%; P = 0.005, P = 0.001, P = 0.005, respectively). In chest x-ray, cavitation and reticulonodular pattern was more frequent in TB with DM (55.5%, 22.2% vs. 31.2%, 8% - P = 0.008, P = 0.02, respectively). The rate of sputum smear positivity in TB with DM and TB without DM was 66.6% and 47.3%, respectively (P = 0.03).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  According to the results of this study, in approach to every DM cases suffering of respiratory symptoms such as productive cough, hemoptysis and dyspnea in association with cavitation or miliary mottling in chest x-ray, pulmonary TB should be considered at the top of the differential diagnosis list.
authors.affiliation: Health institute,Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center, Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Seyed Mohammad
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Alavi
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Department, Razi Hospital, Medical College, Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Mehdi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Khoshkho
authors.affiliation: Khuzestan Health Center, Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Shokrolah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Salmanzadeh
authors.affiliation: Khuzestan Health Center, Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Mehdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eghtesad
keywords: Clinical Features; Diabetes Mellitus; Epidemiology; Pulmonary tuberculosis; Radiology