Clinical profile of extra pulmonary tuberculosis: A retrospective south Indian study

Abstract

: Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most important global health problems. The prevalence of TB is high among the developing world. India has the highest TB burden, accounting for 1.9 million cases of the 9.1 million cases of globally. Although tuberculosis is primarily the disease affecting the lungs, Called Pulmonary TB (PTB), it may also affect other sites such as lymph nodes, central nervous system, bones, and gastrointestinal tract which is known as Extra pulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB). Extra-pulmonary TB patient reporting has been increased from 17% to 21% over period of 10 years which demands the evaluation of clinical profiles of EPTB in order to diagnose and implement the precise treatment plan. : To Determine the clinical profile of extra pulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) patients in South Indian population. : Three years’ retrospective data of TB patients from 2015 – 2017 registered in 4 TB units of central Chennai was collected. The Study included the confirmed cases of EPTB without co-infections. Parameters such as Socio-demographic variables, clinical features and treatment outcome was collected. Age and gender wise comparisons was done for all the parameters using descriptive statistics. Lymphnode TB was the most common type of EPTB and significant association between age, gender and site of EPTB was found in the study necessitating well planned strategies, program-specified protocols for the diagnosis and treatment of extra pulmonary tuberculosis cases.