Mycobacterium Tuberculosis infection among the elderly in 20 486 rural residents aged 50–70 years in Zhongmu County, China

Abstract

Objectives: Elderly individuals in rural China have been known to be at increased risk of contracting tuberculosis (TB) and developing active disease. This study aims to estimate the burden of mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection and to identify potential targeted subgroups for infection control. Methods: As part of the investigation of an interventional study, 50-to 70-year-old rural residents in Zhongmu County were targeted for MTB infection testing using QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT). Questionnaires and physical examinations were conducted to acquire their demographic information and health status. Results: A total of 20 486 individuals were included in the analysis. The prevalence of QFT positivity was 20.79% (4259/20 486) and 50 participants (0.24%) had indeterminate results. A positive doseeresponse relation was found for QFT positivity with smoking intensity. Compared with non-drinkers, the risk of MTB infection was lower among participants with moderate alcohol consumption (<10 g/day) with adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 0.82 (95% CI 0.71e0.94). In addition, gender of male, with a history of previous TB or silicosis, and hepatitis B/C virus infection were associated with increased risk of MTB infection. An indeterminate QFT result was related to being underweight (adjusted OR 3.18; 95% CI 1.09e9.26). Conclusions: Our results indicate a high burden of MTB infection among the elderly in this rural area. Smokers, individuals with a history of previous TB or silicosis, and those with hepatitis B/C virus infection should be prioritized for MTB infection control to reduce the risk of disease development from a new infection.

Left Main Bronchus Stenosis Lesion, Neutrophil Count, and Platelet Count Are Predictors of Post-Tuberculosis Bronchomalacia

“…Supplementing that finding, this study found that rural residents had higher rates of PTBM. This finding might be related to the fact that rural residents had lower quality of life, lower level of education, and poorer compliance with standardized anti-TB treatments than urban residents [ 23 – 25 ]. In the present study, patients with BM were more likely to present with wheeze symptoms than those without BM.…”

<p>Primary Drug-Resistance Pattern and Trend in Elderly Tuberculosis Patients in Shandong, China, from 2004 to 2019</p>

“…It means that we should put our sights on primary tuberculosis among the elderly, especially DR-TB, to face the problem which the aging population will bring. Previous studies on elderly TB in China showed that an aging population had a higher TB incidence rate and risk to develop TB disease, [11][12][13] Nevertheless, the studies on DR-TB in the elderly are few. Therefore, we investigated epidemiological characteristics and trend of primary DR-TB among the elderly in this study.…”

Impact of population aging on the global burden of tuberculosis: A systematic review

“…Therefore, preventive measures in places where elderly people congregate may yield better results. A large Chinese study [19] included 20,486 older adults aged 50 to 70 years, in which men with a history of HBV or HCV infection, heavy smokers, and participants with a previous history of tuberculosis or silicosis were more likely to be infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Currently, China has not developed a complete national guideline for the management of patients with latent M. tuberculosis infection, and a modeling analysis [2] suggests that limiting reactivation of latent infection in the elderly population would have a greater impact on reducing the burden of TB, which would contribute to China's early achievement of the global goal of ending TB by 2035.…”