[Child tuberculosis at the teaching hospital of Brazzaville from 1995 to 2003]

Tuberculosis and HIV co-infection in Congolese children: risk factors of death

Introduction

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and tuberculosis (TB) are the leading causes of death from infectious disease worldwide. The prevalence of HIV among children with TB in moderate to high prevalence countries ranges between 10% and 60%. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of HIV infection among children treated for TB in Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course (DOTS) clinics in Lubumbashi and to identify risk of death during this co-infection.

Methods

This is a cross-sectional study of children under-15, treated for tuberculosis from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2015. Clinical, paraclinical and outcome data were collected in 22 DOTS of Lubumbashi. A statistical comparison was made between dead and survived HIV-infected TB children. We performed the multivariate analyzes and the significance level set at p-value <0.05.

Results

A total of 840 children with TB were included. The prevalence of HIV infection was 20.95% (95% CI: 18.34-23.83%). The mortality rate was higher for HIV-infected children (47.73%) compared to HIV-uninfected children (17.02%) (p<0.00001). Age <5 years (aOR=6.50 [1.96-21.50]), a poor nutritional status (aOR=23.55 [8.20-67.64]), and a negative acid-fast bacilli testing (aOR=4.51 [1.08-18.70]) were associated with death during anti-TB treatment.

Conclusion

TB and HIV co-infection is a reality in pediatric settings in Lubumbashi. High mortality highlights the importance of early management.

[Factors associated with tuberculosis in children at the University Hospital Centre Mother-Child Tsaralalàna, Antananarivo: a case-control study]

Introduction

A Madagascar, la tuberculose reste un problème de santé publique majeur, l'incidence s’élevant à 16% depuis 2009. Le présent travail a pour objet d'identifier les facteurs de risque de tuberculose chez l'enfant.

Méthodes

Nous avons mené une étude rétrospective de type cas-témoins sur les facteurs de risque de la tuberculose chez les enfants de 0 à 15 ans au Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Mère-Enfant de Tsaralalàna, de Janvier 2009 à Décembre 2011. Les enfants diagnostiqués de tuberculose dont le diagnostic a été retenu par des éléments de certitude ou par le score pédiatrique de la tuberculose représentent les cas. Les enfants hospitalisés durant la même période, non tuberculeux et de même âge, sont classés témoins. L'Odds Ratio quantifie les associations.

Résultats

Au total, 91 cas et 173 témoins ont été inclus. Parmi les cas, 73,62% présentent une malnutrition. De fortes associations sont démontrées avec: la malnutrition sévère (OR=6 (IC95% 2,43-15,61 (p<10-5))); le contage tuberculeux (OR=4,71 (IC95% 1,76-12,7 (p=0,003))); la non vaccination par le BCG (OR=4,21 (IC95% 1,99-8,99 (p < 2.10-5))); le niveau intellectuel maternel bas (OR=4,17 (IC95% 0,67-28,14 (p=0,06))); la taille de la fratrie à partir de 5 (OR=4,5). Des associations faibles sont retrouvées pour les autres facteurs étudiés. Les cas présentent une létalité de 18,7% contre 6,3% chez les témoins (p<10-5); 64,7 % des décès sont dus aux formes méningées.

Conclusion

La tuberculose reste un fléau chez les enfants, avec une lourde responsabilité de la pauvreté rassemblant presque tous les facteurs sus-cités.

TB and HIV in the Central African region: current knowledge and knowledge gaps

PURPOSE

Reliable and comprehensive data on the HIV/AIDS and TB co-pandemics from Central Africa remain scarce. This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview on current and past research activities in the region and provides a basis for future research work to close knowledge gaps.

METHODS

The scientific literature was searched for publications meeting the following search terms: "tuberculosis" or "HIV" or "acquired immunodeficiency syndrome", combined with "Central Africa", or the names of individual countries within the region. Original studies, reviews and case series were included, and a selection of relevant articles was made.

RESULTS

Most research in the field of HIV and TB has been conducted in Cameroon, where the epidemics have been described fairly well. The Democratic Republic of Congo ranked second on the amount of publications, despite the civil wars over the past several decades. Very little has been published on HIV and TB in the other countries, possibly due to the poor infrastructure of health care systems, lack of scientific capacity building or shortage of laboratory equipment.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the relatively high burden of HIV and TB in the Central African region, the amount of research activities on these topics is limited. A better understanding of the co-epidemics in this region is urgently needed. The occurrence of opportunistic infections, treatment complications and drug resistance in TB and HIV need to be better described; the failure of public health systems needs to be understood, and research infrastructure needs to be developed. Only then will it be possible to turn the tide against the HIV and TB epidemics in this region.