Objective: To compare the socio-demographic, clinical, and diagnostic characteristics and treatment outcomes between extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) and pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in children and adolescents in Rio de Janeiro, a high TB-burdened Brazilian city.
Methods: This retrospective study used data from patients with EPTB and PTB aged 0 - 18 years, notified on two national databases from 2014 to 2016.
Results: Among the 1008 patients, 144 (14.2%) had EPTB. Patients with EPTB showed higher odds of hospital-based diagnosis (odds ratio (OR): 6.76 [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 4.62-9.90]; p < 0.001), no laboratory confirmation (OR: 4.9 2.14 [95% CI: 3.07 - 7.85]; p < 0.001), and being <14 years old (OR: 3.13 [95% CI: 2.18-4.49]) than those with PTB. A diagnosis without laboratory investigation was observed among 301/864 (34.8%) patients with PTB, 48/144 (33.3%) with EPTB, and among those aged under five years with EPTB (15/27 [55.6%]). TB deaths were more frequent in patients with EPTB (5/144 [3.5%]) than in those with PTB (4/864[0.5%]) (p = 0.001); 4/5 (80%) TB deaths were due to TB meningitis; 50% died within 14 days of diagnosis.
Conclusions: EPTB remains a clinical diagnostic challenge that needs to be addressed to fully benefit from the higher sensitivity laboratory investigations.
Keywords: Adolescents; Children; Extrapulmonary tuberculosis; Pediatric tuberculosis; Treatment outcomes; Tuberculosis diagnosis.
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