A Study on Recurrence Rate of Pulmonary Tuberculosis in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Pakistan.

Abstract

ABSTRACT:

Objective:

          To determine the prevalence of the recurrence rate of Pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) in successfully treated patients in a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan.

Methodology:

          This cross-sectional study was conducted at Benazir Bhutto Hospital Rawalpindi. The study duration was from 01-January-2019 to 01-August-2020. During the study period, a total number of ten thousand nine hundred ninety-seven (10997) patients presented in the chest clinic of the hospital and were included in this study, these patients were re-treatment TB patients and presented with the first-time diagnosis of TB. The recurrence rate was the primary end-point of this study.

Results:

There were 10997 patients included in this study, out of these 642 (5.83%) patients presented with recurrence. Out of a total of 642 recurrence cases, 533 (83%) patients were SS positive, and the remaining 109 (17%) were SS negative. Out of 642, 341 (53.1%) patients were male and 301 (46.9%) patients were female. Regarding age, most of the patients were in the age group 16-30 (49%), 93 (23%) were in the age group 31-45 years. Regarding the timing of recurrence, 372 (58%) patients presented with in one year, 109 (17%) presented in 12-24 months, 52 (8%) presented in 24-36 months.

Conclusion:

          Based on our study, the recurrence rate of pulmonary TB was 5.83% in the Pakistani population. The recurrence rate is high in patients having age 15-45 years and recurrence occurs in 58% of patients within first year after successful treatment of Pulmonary TB.