Background: Persons with diabetes mellitus (DM) have a 3-fold increased risk of tuberculosis (TB). Atypical radiographic findings and differences in bacteriologic response during anti-TB treatment have been reported in earlier studies; however, the findings have varied. We evaluated the effect of DM on manifestations and response to treatment in adults with pulmonary TB in Qatar.
Methods: The impact of DM on the clinical and radiographic presentations of pulmonary TB and bacteriologic response during anti-TB treatment was evaluated between January 2007 and December 2011, comparing patients with and without DM. This is a retrospective unmatched case-control study conducted at a large national hospital. Cases and controls were randomly selected from patients diagnosed with pulmonary TB over a 5-year period. Sputum culture conversion was assessed after 2 months of anti-TB treatment.
Results: Clinical symptoms were similar between patients with and without DM. Patients with DM had a higher initial sputum acid-fast bacillus (AFB) smear grade and were less likely to have cavitary lesions on initial chest radiographs than patients without DM. Of 134 adults with DM and TB, 71 (53%) remained sputum culture positive after 2 months of anti-TB treatment, compared with 36 (27%) patients without DM.
Conclusions: DM was associated with atypical radiographic findings and delayed sputum culture conversion at 2 months in adults with pulmonary TB in Qatar. Increased health education of patients with DM about symptoms of TB, low thresholds for evaluation for active TB, and close monitoring of bacteriologic response to treatment among patients with TB and DM are warranted.
Keywords: diabetes mellitus; migrant workers; pulmonary tuberculosis.