Understanding HIV and Tuberculosis Co-infection: Clinical Outcomes and Population Characteristics

Abstract

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most common opportunistic infections and a leading cause of death among people living with HIV (PLHIV). HIV-TB co-infection is a major clinical and public health problem, yet local data on the interval between HIV diagnosis and TB onset, together with antiretroviral (ARV) regimens, remain limited. This study aims to determine the clinical profile of HIV and TB co-infected patients at Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital Surabaya, from January 2021 until December 2022. Methods: This research is a descriptive cross-sectional study including HIV patients with tuberculosis co-infection admitted to the Infectious Disease Intermediate Care Unit at Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital Surabaya, from January 2021 to December 2022, who fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Results: There were 34 patients who met the criteria, and the most demographic data of HIV and TB co-infected patients were obtained in the young adult age group (26-45 years old) (47.1%), male sex (71%), with private jobs (38.2%), and high school education level (58.3%). The patient’s time period from being diagnosed with HIV to the appearance of TB disease was mostly known to be below 1 year since being diagnosed with HIV (55.9%). The most ARV treatment regimens were tenofovir, lamivudine, and efavirenz (TDF+3TC+EFV) (58.8%). Conclusion: In this cohort, HIV-TB co-infection mainly affected young adults and frequently developed early after HIV diagnosis. These descriptive findings support early TB screening and preventive therapy soon after HIV diagnosis. Larger multicenter studies that include clinical outcomes are warranted.