Aspects Of Tuberculosis Research Articles

Knowledge, attitude and practice regarding tuberculosis among nursing students in a coastal district of Karnataka

IntroductionIndia has the highest burden of Tuberculosis (TB) in the world. Delay in diagnosis and treatment is one of the main reasons for high burden of TB in India. Proper knowledge, attitude and practice regarding Tuberculosis among health care workers is essential to improve case finding and treatment in TB. Nursing students are the prospective healthcare providers in the fight against tuberculosis. AimTo assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding tuberculosis among nursing students. MethodsThis was a Cross-sectional, analytical type of study done on 313 nursing students after taking Institutional Ethical committee clearance. It was done using a pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire, on selected nursing colleges in Mangalore city of Karnataka state. Analysis of data was done using the software “IBM SPSS Statistics”. Chi-square test was used to test association. P value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. ResultsOnly 24.9% of the respondents had good knowledge and 58.8% had moderate knowledge about tuberculosis. Students studying B.Sc. nursing knew more about tuberculosis than those studying General Nursing. 67.4% of students had good attitude towards tuberculosis. Practice towards various aspects of tuberculosis was not satisfactory in more than 50% of the students. ConclusionMost of the nursing students have moderate knowledge about tuberculosis, but their attitude and practice towards TB is not at satisfactory level. Hence specific training measures should be included in their curriculum to improve their knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding tuberculosis. This will help in early diagnosis and proper treatment of TB.

Overview of Tuberculosis: Causes, Symptoms and Risk Factors

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health threat, exacerbated by factors such as drug resistance, co-infections, and social determinants of health. This comprehensive review examines various aspects of TB, including epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control measures. The bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes TB and primarily affects the lungs, although it can also affect other organs. Risk factors for TB include poverty, malnutrition, overcrowded living conditions, and immunocompromised states such as HIV/AIDS. Symptoms of TB include cough, fever, weight loss, and night sweats, but can vary depending on the site of infection. Diagnosis typically involves clinical evaluation, imaging studies, and microbiological testing, with rapid molecular tests such as the Xpert MTB/RIF assay revolutionizing TB diagnostics. Treatment consists of multidrug therapy for six to nine months, with drug-resistant TB requiring longer and more complex regimens. Prevention and control efforts focus on early case detection, treatment adherence, infection control measures, and Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine vaccination. TB research and innovation aim to develop new diagnostics, drugs, and vaccines to improve TB control and treatment outcomes. Challenges to TB control include stigma, healthcare access barriers, and the rise of drug-resistant TB strains. Collaboration and advocacy efforts are essential for addressing TB in special populations, high-risk settings, and co-infection scenarios. Integrating a One Health approach, harnessing technology, and addressing climate change impacts is critical for advancing TB control efforts and achieving the goal of ending the global TB epidemic.

CO-INFECTION WITH HERPESVIRUSES AS A NEW ASPECT OF TUBERCULOSIS IN CHILDREN

The increase in the incidence of tuberculosis in adults in recent years leads to negative changes in the epidemiological situation among children. Tuberculosis infection is often found against the background of various chronic pathologies. It has been established that the activation of opportunistic, especially herpetic, infections increases the risk of infection with MBT. Tuberculosis, in turn, has a clinically more severe course against the background of secondary immunodeficiency. In childhood, the immaturity of the immune system is added, which in turn can also serve as a prerequisite for the progression of the tuberculosis process. A so-called vicious circle is formed - a persistent, latent herpes infection leads to the appearance of an immunodeficiency state, in turn, mycobacterium tuberculosis – contributes to the further deepening of immunological dysfunction, which leads to the development of the syndrome of violation of anti-infective protection and creates the basis for the progression of the tuberculosis process. Currently, the actual goal of scientific research is to establish the specific weight of herpesvirus infections among tuberculosis patients, their impact on the occurrence, spread and course of various forms of tuberculosis, the study of virological, immunological and clinical-epidemiological aspects of the problem of co-infection of tuberculosis and herpesviruses. The resolution of the issue of combined infection as a new aspect of tuberculosis can play a decisive role in the effective diagnosis and prediction of the severity of the course of tuberculosis in childhood at the current stage and will improve the epidemiological situation with tuberculosis in general.

Tuberculosis in Vaccinated versus Unvaccinated Children with BCG Vaccine in Niamey: Epidemiological, Diagnostic and Outcome Aspects

Introduction: Tuberculosis remains a public health problem worldwide. The BCG vaccination is one of the response means. The objective of this work was to study the impact of BCG vaccination on morbidity and mortality related to childhood tuberculosis in Niamey. Patients and methods: It was a multicenter prospective and comparative study from January to September 2017 in two-referral hospital centers of Niamey and the National Anti-Tuberculosis Center. The study population consisted exclusively of children aged 0 to 15 years old suffering from tuberculosis. Epidemiological, diagnostic, and evolving aspects in vaccinated and unvaccinated children were studied. Statistical tests used were Pearson's Chi² and Fisher's exact test (p <0.05). Results: Ninety-one children were studied. The BCG vaccination rate was 60.4%. The mean age of children was 6 years 11 months [3 months-15 years]. Children under 2 years of age were less affected (11%) in vaccinated children than in unvaccinated children (3.2%). No association was found between the duration of tuberculosis signs (p = 0.37), expression of tuberculin skin test (p = 0.43), and the children's BCG vaccination status. On the other hand, there was a significant link between vaccination status and the occurrence of complications (p = 0.014), and death risk (p = 0.003). Conclusion: This study shows that children’s BCG vaccination status correlates with some aspects of tuberculosis. Unvaccinated children have a significantly higher risk of complications and death from TB.

Tuberculosis in Vaccinated versus Unvaccinated Children with BCG Vaccine in Niamey: Epidemiological, Diagnostic and Outcome Aspects

Introduction: Tuberculosis remains a public health problem worldwide. The BCG vaccination is one of response means. The objective of this work was to study impact of BCG vaccination on morbidity and mortality related to childhood tuberculosis in Niamey. Patients and methods: It was a multicenter prospective and comparative study from January to September 2017 in two-referral hospital centers of Niamey and the National Anti-Tuberculosis Center. The study population consisted exhaustively of children aged 0 to 15 years old suffering from tuberculosis. Epidemiological, diagnostic and evolving aspects in vaccinated and unvaccinated children were studied. Statistical tests used were Pearson's Chi² and Fisher's exact test (p <0.05). Results: Ninety-one children were studied. The BCG vaccination rate was 60.4%. The mean age of children was 6 years 11 months [3 months-15 years]. Children under 2 years of age were less affected (11%) in vaccinated children than in unvaccinated children (3.2%). No association was found between duration of tuberculosis signs (p = 0.37), expression of tuberculin skin test (p = 0.43), and the children's BCG vaccination status. On the other hand, there was a significant link between vaccination status and the results of microscopic examination of sputum or gastric fluid (p = 0.02), occurrence of complications (p = 0.014) and death risk (p = 0.003). Conclusion: This study shows that children’s BCG vaccination status interferes with some aspects of tuberculosis. Therefore, fighting against tuberculosis must be intensified, through combination of many strategies including vaccination.

Health intervention proposal during primary care for tuberculosis prevention: an observational cross-sectional study

The objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a health intervention to improve the knowledge of SUS patients about tuberculosis, after analyzing the epidemiological profile of this disease in a municipality in the interior of the state of São Paulo, based on the cases reported in the System of Tuberculosis Notification from 2006 to 2015. This intervention was carried out by the application of a questionnaire about this disease to users of the primary health service, before and after the delivery of an explanatory pamphlet containing various information in a simplified way about tuberculosis. The results were tabulated and statistically analyzed. Of the 1,281 cases reported during this period, the majority were males aged between 30 and 39 years and had studied for four to seven years. The analysis of the questionnaires showed that the interviewees' knowledge improved concerning most of the disease criteria after the delivery of the pamphlet. In this way, it is concluded that the intervention method, using the explanatory pamphlet on tuberculosis, proved to be efficient, in general, in making users of the Basic Health Unit aware of various aspects of tuberculosis.

1404. Tuberculosis and HIV Coinfection: A Review of 135 Cases Experience of the Infectious Diseases Department- CHU Mohamed VI- Marrakech

BackgroundTuberculosis is a health problem in Morocco, which is increasingly indicative of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.ObjectiveTo determine the epidemiological, clinical and paraclinical, therapeutic and evolutionary aspects of tuberculosis and HIV co-infection.Methodswe report 135 cases co-infected with HIV and tuberculosis, collected by the infectious diseases department at the Mohammed VI University Hospital in Marrakech. This is a 12-year retrospective study (2007 to 2020) that involved all HIV-infected patients hospitalized for tuberculosis regardless of its location.ResultsThe mean age of the patients was 40 years (17-73 years). A male predominance was noted in 69% of cases. In 74.6% of cases, tuberculosis was indicative of HIV infection. Nine patients were receiving antiretroviral (ARV) treatment at the time of the discovery of tuberculosis. There were 24% pulmonary tuberculosis, 25.3% extrapulmonary tuberculosis and 49% disseminated tuberculosis. Tuberculosis was confirmed in 31.7% of cases. At the time of tuberculosis diagnosis, the average CD4 count was 86 cells / mm. Quadruple therapy with isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide and ethambutol was started in 83% of patients. The average time to start ARVs was 7 weeks. All patients who received ARVs received a combination therapy comprising the combination of 2 nucleoside analogs and one non-nucleoside analog. At the end of our work, the evolution was favorable in 53% of cases, death occurred in 25% of cases, 18.6% of patients were lost to follow-up, two cases of failure and another of relapse. Immune restoration syndrome was noted in 8 cases. Drug toxicity was observed in 24.5% of patients, 73% of which was related to hepato-toxicity of antibacillary drugs.ConclusionTuberculosis is the most common opportunistic infection in people with HIV. Despite the advent of highly active triple therapy, tuberculosis is still a major cause of death in HIV positive people.Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

Editorial introductions.

Editorial introductions.

The effect of an educational intervention on awareness of various aspects of pulmonary tuberculosis in patients with the disease.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem worldwide. Raising awareness of various aspects of the disease among patients who have TB is important to help in control and prevention. This was a quasi-experimental study, pre- and post-test, designed to evaluate the effect of an educational intervention on awareness among patients with pulmonary TB. A structured questionnaire covering various facts about pulmonary TB was used in the pre-intervention phase for 150 TB patients who were being followed-up in a major hospital in Sudan (r = 0.80). The same questionnaire was reused after the patients underwent an educational awareness programme. There were more males (74%) than females. Mean age was 36.5 years. Most patients (86.6%) had some education, however, their knowledge about aspects of TB was generally poor prior to the intervention. This included the nature of the causative organism, modes of transmission and measures needed for the control and prevention. Post-intervention, there was significant improvement in all aspects of knowledge tested (P < 0.007). Although the diagnosis of TB in the participants was confirmed and they were on regular clinical follow-up, their knowledge about various aspects of TB was poor prior to the educational intervention. There is a need for more effort towards raising awareness among patients with TB about their disease while on treatment. This is important to help control and prevent the disease.

Aspectos epidemiológicos da coinfecção tuberculose/HIV: análise de uma década em Teresina, Piauí, Brasil

A tuberculose (TB) constitui um problema de saúde pública mundial que se tem agravado nas últimas três décadas. A coinfecção TB/HIV é responsável pelo aumento da incidência, da prevalência e da mortalidade, bem como do aumento da multirresistência aos fármacos utilizados no tratamento da doença. Este trabalho tem como objetivo analisar aspectos epidemiológicos da coinfecção Tuberculose/HIV na cidade de Teresina-PI no período de 2009 a 2018 obtidos no Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação (SINAN). Trata-se de um estudo epidemiológico retrospectivo e descritivo de cunho populacional, no qual se empregou dados secundários de casos de portadores de coinfecção Tuberculose/HIV na cidade de Teresina-PI, avaliando aspectos relacionados ao sexo, faixa etária, raça, escolaridade, evolução e formas clinicas, quantidade de casos no município e evolução clínica da doença. Os dados foram exportados e analisados no programa Microsoft Office Excel 2016. Os indivíduos mais acometidos pela doença são do sexo masculino, com faixa etária entre 25 a 34 anos. A raça predominante é a parda indígena. No que se refere ano com maior incidência de casos confirmados, 2012(14,57%) aparece em primeiro lugar. Em relação aos critérios de escolaridade, 4ª a 8ª serie incompleta do Ensino Fundamental foi prevalente. Nota-se que a evolução clínica mais recorrente foi à alta hospitalar/cura.

Knowledge and attitude regarding tuberculosis in a rural area of eastern Maharashtra: an implication for advocacy and communication strategy planning in the national program

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem in India. Adequate and timely knowledge about tuberculosis is associated with positive attitude towards tuberculosis, which can improve both health seeking behavior and adherence to treatment. The study was planned with the objective of determining the Knowledge and Attitude regarding tuberculosis among rural population of eastern Maharashtra, India.Methods: A community based cross sectional study was carried in rural area of eastern Maharashtra using a semi structured, pretested interview schedule. A total 225 adult population aged 18 years and above, who are residing in the field practice area were selected from sampled households using systematic random sampling. Data collection was done by house-to-house survey.Results: Out of 225 respondents, 220 (97.8%) had heard about TB. Cough as a major symptom of TB was known to 80.5% of study subjects. Among the subjects surveyed, 84.5% of respondents were aware of the mode of transmission of TB from one person to another. More than half of respondents were aware of sputum examination as a diagnostic investigation. Three fourth of the subjects reported that TB could be treated by modern medicine. However only 22.2% of them were known to BCG immunization as means of prevention for tuberculosis. Tendency to discriminate TB patients was evident as 53% respondents opined to isolate TB patients from the family and 37.7% opined to avoid sharing food with these patients.Conclusions: Although the study revealed adequate knowledge about nearly every aspect of tuberculosis; there are few myths about causes, symptoms, transmission, and TB prevention. There is a great need to improve awareness in illiterate individuals and females.

Algunos aspectos históricos y sociales de la tuberculosis con énfasis en el Perú

Algunos aspectos históricos y sociales de la tuberculosis con énfasis en el Perú

Aspects of tuberculosis in the elderly

Tuberculosis is an infectious-contagious disease, whose etiological agent is Mycobacterium tuberculosis , and currently stands as the second leading cause of death from infectious diseases in the world. This study aims to describe its clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects in the elderly. This is an exploratory-descriptive cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, developed in a Sanitary District in Natal/RN, from January 2010 to December 2015. Among the 94 participants, the majority were males (51.1%) aged between 60 and 69. The pulmonary form of the disease was predominant (86.2%) in the studied group and most of the cases were new (59.6%). The treatment was self-administered (52.1%) and completed within the appropriate period (57.4%). The tuberculin test was not undergone by the majority of the elderly (76.6%), neither was histopathology (86.2%), while chest X-ray was suggestive of tuberculosis (72.3%). It was observed that the elderly did not undergo the first bacilloscopy (59.5%) and, out of those who were subjected to the second, it was positive for most (54.2%). It is worth mentioning that the Human Immunodeficiency Virus serology was not carried out in 54.2% of the senior patients with tuberculosis. Older individuals make up a risk population group and should be given special attention from health professionals.

Эпидемиологические и клинико-диагностические аспекты туберкулёза, сочетанного с ВИЧ-инфекцией, в Гвинейской Республике

Эпидемиологические и клинико-диагностические аспекты туберкулёза, сочетанного с ВИЧ-инфекцией, в Гвинейской Республике

Impact of sensitization workshop on knowledge regarding tuberculosis among graduate students of rural area of Bareilly District

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health concern worldwide. It has been seen that TB control efforts worldwide are although impressive, but not sufficient. Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) are an integral and important strategy of the program to create awareness among general public. Objective: The study was conducted to assess the impact of sensitization workshop regarding tuberculosis among graduate students of rural area of Bareilly district.Material &amp; Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March 2017 to July 2017 by interviewing 146 students in a college in rural area of Bareilly district, U.P after multistage sampling. A pre-designed and pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect the pre-workshop and post-workshop data. The data obtained was compiled and statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23.Results: A paired-samples t-test was conducted to analyse the impact of sensitization workshop among the students. The mean scores for knowledge regarding TB symptoms pre-workshop was 3.20 ± 1.90 and post-workshop was 5.68 ± 1.58.Conclusion: Knowledge about various aspects of TB was significantly improved after students attended a training workshop. Efforts should be geared towards education in terms of training and retraining regarding TB, as it is known that IEC activities can create awareness among students, thus eradicating the stigma and fear associated with it.

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

A survey of knowledge, attitude, and practices of private retail pharmacies staff in tuberculosis care: study from Dera Ismail Khan City, Pakistan

BackgroundIn order to engage pharmacies in tuberculosis (TB) care, a survey was conducted in the Dera Ismail (DI) Khan City of the Khyber Pakhtoon Khwa province, Pakistan. The objectives were to; 1) characterize the retail pharmacies; 2) determine knowledge of the staff on various aspects of pulmonary TB; 3) determine practices related to the sale of anti-TB drugs, and referrals of presumptive TB patient, and willingness to participate in the National Tuberculosis Control Programme’s (NTP) Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course (DOTS) strategy.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted by using a structured questionnaire to collect data from pharmacy staff at all the private retail pharmacies of the DI khan city.ResultsAll the interviewed staff (n = 82) were males, only 38% had formal training as pharmacist (5%) or as a pharmacy assistant (33%). Pharmacies established for a longer period were better staffed and had high customer load. About 92% of the interviewed staff knew that persistent cough is a symptom for TB, 82% knew that TB is diagnosed by examination of sputum. Almost 66% of the pharmacy staff did not know multi-drug resistance TB as a consequence of improper treatment. Those with formal training and longer experience in retail pharmacy had better knowledge of various aspects of TB as compared to the staff with no formal pharmacy training and lesser experience (p < 0.01). Only 57% were aware of NTP while only 30% had heard of the DOTS strategy. All reported sale of first-line TB drugs as fixed dose combinations. The majority (80%) referred presumptive TB patients to chest physicians and no patient was referred to the NTP. Nearly 83% of the interviewed staff was willing to be involved in TB control efforts by getting training and referring patients to the DOTS facility.ConclusionThere was shortage of professionally qualified and female staff in private retail pharmacies. Knowledge of professionally qualified staff about TB seemed sufficient to identify presumptive TB patients; however, their knowledge about NTP and DOTS was poor, and referral practices to NTP and DOTS centers were suboptimal. Majority of staff was willing to be involved in TB control efforts.

Effect of Planned Teaching Programme on knowledge and practices in relation to selected aspects of Tuberculosis among patients diagnosed with Tuberculosis

Effect of planned teaching programme on knowledge and practices in relation to selected aspects of tuberculosis among patients diagnosed with tuberculosis.

General aspects of tuberculosis: an update on the etiologic agent and treatment

General aspects of tuberculosis: an update on the etiologic agent and treatment

Recent mouse models and vaccine candidates for preventing chronic/latent tuberculosis infection and its reactivation

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major challenge in public health worldwide. Until today, the only widely used and approved vaccine is the Mycobacterium bovis bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG). This vaccine provides a highly variable level of protection against the active, pulmonary form of tuberculosis, and practically none against the latent form of TB infection. This disparity in protection has been extensively studied, and for this reason, several groups have focused their research on the quest for attenuated vaccines based on M. tuberculosis or on the identification of latency-associated antigens that can be incorporated into modified BCG, or that can be used as adjuvanted subunit vaccines. In order to seek new potential antigens relevant for infection, some researchers have performed experiments with highly sensitive techniques such as transcriptomic and proteomic analyses using sputum samples from humans or by using mouse models resembling several aspects of TB. In this review, we focus on reports of new mouse models or mycobacterial antigens recently tested for developing vaccine candidates against chronic/latent tuberculosis and its reactivation.