Risk of self-reported symptoms or diagnosis of active tuberculosis in relationship to low body mass index, diabetes and their co-occurrence. Tropical medicine & international health Prince, L., Andrews, J. R., Basu, S., Goldhaber-Fiebert, J. D. 2016; 21 (10): 1272-1281

Abstract

Globally, tuberculosis prevalence has declined, but its risk factors have varied across place and time - low body mass index (BMI) has persisted while diabetes has increased. Using India's National Family Health Survey (NFHS), wave 3 and World Health Survey (WHS) data, we examined their relationships to support projection of future trends and targeted control efforts.Multivariate logistic regressions at the individual level with and without diabetes/BMI interactions assessed the relationship between tuberculosis, diabetes and low BMI and the importance of risk factor co-occurrence. Population-level analyses examined how tuberculosis incidence and prevalence varied with diabetes/low BMI co-occurrence.In NFHS, diabetic individuals had higher predicted tuberculosis risks (diabetic vs. non-diabetic: 2.50% vs. 0.63% at low BMI; 0.81% vs. 0.20% at normal BMI; 0.37% vs. 0.09% at high BMI), which were not significantly different when modelled independently or allowing for risk modification with diabetes/low BMI co-occurrence. WHS findings were generally consistent. Population-level analysis found that diabetes/low BMI co-occurrence may be associated with elevated tuberculosis risk, although its predicted effect on tuberculosis incidence/prevalence was generally =0.2 percentage points and not robustly statistically significant.Concerns about the additional elevation of tuberculosis risk from diabetes/low BMI co-occurrence and hence the need to coordinate tuberculosis control efforts around the nexus of co-occurring diabetes and low BMI may be premature. However, study findings robustly support the importance of individually targeting low BMI and diabetes as part of ongoing tuberculosis control efforts.

View details for DOI 10.1111/tmi.12763

View details for PubMedID 27495971