[Tuberculosis and HIV infection: study of 50 cases]

Area of Science:

• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health
• Clinical Medicine

Background:

• Tuberculosis (TB) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) co-infection presents complex clinical challenges.
• Intravenous drug use is a significant risk factor in this patient population.
• Understanding the interplay of TB and HIV is crucial for effective management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the clinical, microbiological, radiological, and sonographical findings in patients with co-occurring tuberculosis and HIV infection.
• To compare manifestations between HIV-positive and HIV-negative tuberculosis patients.
• To evaluate the diagnostic utility of sonography for abdominal adenopathies in this cohort.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of clinical data from 50 patients with tuberculosis and HIV infection.
• Inclusion of microbiological (sputum, urine, ganglia cultures), radiological (lung imaging), and sonographical (abdominal imaging) assessments.
• Comparison of findings between HIV-positive and HIV-negative tuberculosis cases.

Main Results:

• Severe respiratory symptoms and peripheral pathological adenopathies were common manifestations.
• HIV-negative tuberculosis patients showed more lung miliary signs and mediastinal adenopathies (p < 0.005).
• Abdominal adenopathies were detected by sonography in 64.3% of patients; tuberculous origin was confirmed in most HIV-positive cases (p < 0.0001).
• Culture positivity exceeded 82% for sputum, urine, and ganglia.
• Pulmonary, extra-pulmonary, and mixed forms of tuberculosis were observed in 24, 11, and 17 patients, respectively.

Conclusions:

• Tuberculosis and HIV co-infection exhibits distinct clinical and radiological patterns.
• Sonography is valuable for detecting abdominal adenopathies of tuberculous origin.
• High microbiological confirmation rates and a good treatment response were noted.