Unusually high incidence of tuberculosis among boys with haemophilia during an outbreak of the disease in hospital.

Abstract

SUMMARY Of 30 children with bleeding disorders exposed to an index tuberculosis case, six developed primary pulmonary tuberculosis and two others became positive skin reactors. There was a significant correlation between the amount of replacement treatment received and the development of evidence of tuberculous infection. Only two of those who developed evidence of tuberculosis had antibodies to the human T cell lymphotropic virus. These two boys showed much later Mantoux positive conversion than the six others.

Mortality rates, life expectancy, and causes of death in people with hemophilia A or B in the United Kingdom who were not infected with HIV

“…The small increase in mortality from Hodgkin disease seems likely to be a chance occurrence, and there was no evidence of an increase in nonHodgkin lymphoma, despite the high levels of hepatitis C infection in this population, although the numbers involved are small and the data are insufficient to rule out a weak relationship. 27,28 There was no evidence of increased mortality from cancer in general or from infections other than hepatitis as have sometimes been suggested, 7,29,30 and the suicide level in people with hemophilia was similar to that in the general population. Variant CJD was first described in 1996, some 10 years after the first reports of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in cattle in the United Kingdom.…”

Long-term surveillance studies of previously untreated and treated patients, virally uninfected and infected patients — impact on the immune and other systems

“…The clinical observation of Beddal et al [7] in 1985 that as many as six of 30 treated hemophilia patients exposed to a patient with tuberculosis acquired the infection suggests that these patients were immunosupppressed. The susceptibility to tuberculous infection appeared to relate positively to the amount of factor concentrates (intermediate purity) previously used, and not to HIV infection, as only two of the six were HIV seroactive.…”

Clotting factor concentrates and immune function in haemophilic patients

“…Although the clinical relevance of these findings is not clear, one group of investigators noted a correlation between the amount of replacement factor received and the development of tuberculosis infections in patients with coagulation disorders. No differences were found in total white cell counts, lymphocytes, platelets, T4:T8 ratio and gammaglobulin levels between patients with and without tuberculosis; however, the researchers noted that other immunological differences may have existed [57].…”