A Prospective Observational Study of Hepatic Dysfunction in Children on Antitubercular Drugs

The frequency, risk factors, and prognosis of antitubercular drug-induced liver injury (TB-DILI) was assessed in this prospective observational study. All consecutive children < 18 y put on antitubercular therapy (ATT) for pulmonary or extrapulmonary tuberculosis between July 2019 and December 2020 were included. Liver function tests (LFTs) were done at baseline and at 2, 4, 6 wk, and then 2 monthly after initiation of therapy till completion of ATT regimen. A total of 81 children [14.27 ± 3.38 y, 34 (42%) males] were included. Out of the patients enrolled, 10 (12.3%) developed TB-DILI at a median of 8.5 (3-18) d of starting ATT. All patients were symptomatic with the most common symptoms being anorexia and nausea (80%). A higher baseline ALT was independently associated with DILI with adjusted OR 2.1 (95% CI 1.3-3.4), p = 0.01. Eight patients tolerated reintroduction of ATT in a sequential manner, 9-24 d after discontinuation.