The 4-month regimen of rifampin was not inferior to the 9-month regimen of isoniazid for the prevention of active tuberculosis and was associated with a higher rate of treatment completion and better safety. (Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00931736 .).

BackgroundDiabetes mellitus (DM) increases active tuberculosis (TB) risk and worsens TB outcomes, jeopardizing TB control especially in TB-endemic countries with rising DM prevalence rates. We assessed DM status and clinical correlates in TB patients across settings in Indonesia, Peru, Romania, and South Africa.MethodsAge-adjusted DM prevalence was estimated using laboratory glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) or fasting plasma glucose in TB patients. Detailed and standardized sociodemographic, anthropometric, and clinical measurements were made. Characteristics of TB patients with or without DM were compared using multilevel mixed-effect regression models with robust standard errors.ResultsOf 2185 TB patients (median age 36.6 years, 61.2% male, 3.8% human immunodeficiency virus–infected), 12.5% (267/2128) had DM, one third of whom were newly diagnosed. Age-standardized DM prevalence ranged from 10.9% (South Africa) to 19.7% (Indonesia). Median HbA1c in TB–DM patients ranged from 7.4% (Romania) to 11.3% (Indonesia). Compared to those without DM, TB–DM patients were older and had a higher body mass index (BMI) (P value < .05). Compared to those with newly diagnosed DM, TB patients with diagnosed DM had higher BMI and HbA1c, less severe TB, and more frequent comorbidities, DM complications, and hypertension (P value < .05).ConclusionsWe show that DM prevalence and clinical characteristics of TB–DM vary across settings. Diabetes is primarily known but untreated, hyperglycemia is often severe, and many patients with TB–DM have significant cardiovascular disease risk and severe TB. This underlines the need to improve strategies for better clinical management of combined TB and DM.

Matricellular proteins such as osteopontin (OPN), galectin-9 (Gal-9), and tenascin-C (TN-C) are expressed not only under normal physiological conditions, but also during infection, inflammation and tumorigenesis. Plasma concentrations of matricellular proteins were studied to determine their diagnostic value as potential markers of tuberculosis (TB) activity. It was found that concentrations of OPN and TN-C were higher in patients with active TB than in healthy controls and individuals with latent infection. Moreover, LTBI patients had higher concentrations of OPN than did healthy controls. Gal-9 concentrations did not differ significantly between groups. Concentrations of matricellular proteins were higher in pleural fluid than in the plasma of patients with TB. Expression of matricellular proteins was also investigated in TB granulomas and other granulomatous diseases. Positive OPN and Gal-9 staining was observed in TB and sarcoidosis granulomas, but not in Crohn disease granulomas. The fibrotic ring around granulomas stained positive for TN-C in TB and sarcoidosis, but not in Crohn disease. Of the three matricellular proteins studied, OPN and TN-C may serve as reliable plasma markers for monitoring TB activity, whereas Gal-9 seems to be expressed more at the site of infection than in the systemic circulation.

CAD4TB has potential as a triage tool for TB screening in PLWD, thereby significantly reducing the need for microbiological examination.

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LTBI prevalence in patients with DM was lower than in household contacts, but patients with DM were more likely to have TB disease. Further studies should explore possible benefits of LTBI screening and preventive therapy in patients with DM in TB-endemic settings.

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Background