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Demographic characteristics of patients with extrapulmonary tuberculosis in Germany

¹ Public Health Centre, Wiesbaden, and ² German Central Committee against Tuberculosis, Berlin, Germany, ³ Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland, ⁴ International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Paris, France.

CORRESPONDENCE: H. L. Rieder, Jetzikofenstrasse 12, 3038 Kirchlindach, Switzerland. E-mail: TBRieder{at}tbrieder.org

Keywords: Age, epidemiology, extrapulmonary, Germany, sex, tuberculosis

Received: February 19, 2007
Accepted August 28, 2007

The aim of the present study was to determine the demographics of patients with extrapulmonary tuberculosis in Germany.

Data on 26,302 tuberculosis cases from a national survey carried out during the period 1996–2000 were analysed.

The crude proportion of tuberculosis patients with extrapulmonary manifestations was 21.6%. Extrapulmonary tuberculosis was most likely among females, children aged <15 yrs and persons originating from Africa and Asia. Females tended to be more likely to have any form of extrapulmonary tuberculosis than males, except pleural tuberculosis. The strength of this association was strongest in the age range 25–64 yrs and less pronounced amongst the oldest patients. Children were particularly prone to the development of lymphatic and meningeal tuberculosis, whereas the likelihood of genitourinary tuberculosis increased with increasing age. Asian and African patients were generally more likely than persons from other areas to have lymphatic, osteoarticular, meningeal and miliary tuberculosis.

The analysis shows important differences, by age, sex and origin, in the likelihood of a tuberculosis patient presenting with extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Since the relative contribution of the foreign-born to tuberculosis in low-prevalence countries is rising, extrapulmonary tuberculosis must be taken into account more often in the differential diagnostic work-up of these patients, particularly among those originating from Asia and Africa.