Comparing Pulmonary and Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis in Nepal
Author Information
Author(s): Sreeramareddy Chandrashekhar T, Panduru Kishore V, Verma Sharat C, Joshi Hari S, Bates Michael N
Primary Institution: Manipal Teaching Hospital, Manipal College of Medical Sciences, Pokhara, Nepal
Hypothesis
What are the demographic, lifestyle, and clinical characteristics that differentiate extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) from pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients in Nepal?
Conclusion
Younger age and female gender may be independent risk factors for EPTB in Nepal.
Supporting Evidence
- EPTB was more common in younger ages (< 25 years) and in females.
- Common sites for EPTB included lymph nodes (42.6%) and peritoneum/intestines (14.8%).
- Logistic regression analysis indicated that age less than 25 years and female gender were associated with EPTB.
- Smoking and diabetes were more likely associated with PTB.
- The study included a total of 526 TB patients, with 474 cases analyzed.
Takeaway
This study found that younger people and women are more likely to have a type of tuberculosis that affects parts of the body other than the lungs.
Methodology
A retrospective analysis of 474 TB patients was conducted using medical case records to identify risk factors for EPTB relative to PTB through logistic regression analysis.
Potential Biases
There may have been selection bias regarding who was tested for HIV, potentially masking differences in HIV positivity between groups.
Limitations
The study may not be representative of the general population as patients were selected from a tertiary-care hospital, and some lifestyle factors were incompletely recorded.
Participant Demographics
The study included 526 TB patients, with 230 classified as EPTB and 244 as PTB, with a male to female ratio of 1.6 overall.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.001
Confidence Interval
95% CI 1.12–3.68 for age < 25 years; 95% CI 1.12–2.56 for female gender
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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