Tuberculosis (TB) remains a public health burden in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan. This region-wide retrospective cohort study reports the treatment outcomes of patients registered in the TB electronic register and treated with first-line drugs in the TB Programme of the Republic of Karakalpakstan from 2005-2020 and factors associated with unfavourable outcomes. Among 35,122 registered patients, 24,394 (69%) patients were adults, 2339 (7%) were children, 18,032 (51%) were male and 19,774 (68%) lived in rural areas. Of these patients, 29,130 (83%) had pulmonary TB and 7497 (>22%) had been previously treated. There were 7440 (21%) patients who had unfavourable treatment outcomes. Factors associated with unfavourable treatment outcomes included: increasing age, living in certain parts of the republic, disability, pensioner status, unemployment, being HIV-positive, having pulmonary TB, and receiving category II treatment. Factors associated with death included: being adult and elderly, living in certain parts of the republic, having a disability, pensioner status, being HIV-positive, and receiving category II treatment. Factors associated with failure included: being adolescent, female, having pulmonary TB. Factors associated with loss to follow-up included: being male, disability, pensioner status, unemployment, receiving category II treatment. In summary, there are sub-groups of patients who need special attention in order to decrease unfavourable treatment outcomes.
Keywords: Republic of Karakalpakstan; Republic of Uzbekistan; central Asia; death; drug resistant tuberculosis; failure; loss to follow up; transfer out; tuberculosis; unfavourable treatment outcomes.