Patients hospitalized with active tuberculosis and Covid-19 coinfection: A matched case-control from the Brazilian Covid-19 Registry

An Acad Bras Cienc. 2024 Apr 22;96(1):e20230791. doi: 10.1590/0001-3765202420230791. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Although control of Covid-19 has improved, the virus continues to cause infections, such as tuberculosis, that is still endemic in many countries, representing a scenario of coinfection. To compare Covid-19 clinical manifestations and outcomes between patients with active tuberculosis infection and matched controls. This is a matched case-control study based on data from the Brazilian Covid-19 Registry, in hospitalized patients aged 18 or over with laboratory confirmed Covid-19 from March 1, 2020, to March 31, 2022. Cases were patients with tuberculosis and controls were Covid-19 patients without tuberculosis. From 13,636 Covid-19, 36 also had active tuberculosis (0.0026%). Pulmonary fibrosis (5.6% vs 0.0%), illicit drug abuse (30.6% vs 3.0%), alcoholism (33.3% vs 11.9%) and smoking (50.0% vs 9.7%) were more common among patients with tuberculosis. They also had a higher frequency of nausea and vomiting (25.0% vs 10.4%). There were no significant differences in in-hospital mortality, mechanical ventilation, need for dialysis and ICU stay. Patients with TB infection presented a higher frequency of pulmonary fibrosis, abuse of illicit drugs, alcoholism, current smoking, symptoms of nausea and vomiting. The outcomes were similar between them.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Betacoronavirus
  • Brazil / epidemiology
  • COVID-19* / complications
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Coinfection* / epidemiology
  • Coronavirus Infections / complications
  • Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology
  • Female
  • Hospital Mortality
  • Hospitalization* / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / complications
  • Pneumonia, Viral / epidemiology
  • Registries
  • SARS-CoV-2*
  • Tuberculosis / complications
  • Tuberculosis / epidemiology