TY - JOUR T1 - Prognostic factors in tuberculosis related mortalities in hospitalized patients JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J VL - 40 IS - Suppl 56 SP - P2657 AU - Ashok Kumar AU - Ghazal Haq AU - Fatima Saifuddin AU - Shaista Ghazal AU - Nadeem Rizvi Y1 - 2012/09/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P2657.abstract N2 - IntroductionDespite effective treatment regimens available, Tuberculosis (TB) stands among one of the leading causes of death in Pakistan.ObjectivesTo evaluate the factors concerned with in-hospital deaths in patients admitted with Tuberculosis at a tertiary care centre.MethodsA retrospective case-control study was undertaken at the Pulmonology department of the largest state-run tertiary care centre in Karachi, Pakistan. For patients hospitalised with TB, sixty of those who were discharged were compared with sixty of those who could not survive during hospitalisation. Radiological findings, clinical indicators and laboratory values were matched between the two groups to locate poor prognostic factors.ResultsFactors concerned with in-hospital mortality listed female sex (p<0.01), late sequels of disease (p<0.01), not taking anti-tuberculosis therapy (ATT, p<0.01), smoking (p<0.01), longer duration of illness (p<0.01), and low haemoglobin levels (p<0.02). Extrapulmonary TB, dissemination of disease, bilateral radiological findings, co-morbidities and multi drug-resistance were not implicated in higher mortality. Most deaths occurred during the first week of admission indicating late referrals and late presentation as an important factor related to in-hospital fatalities.ConclusionsPoor prognosis in TB patients was associated with non-compliance to therapy, anaemic states, late presentation of disease, and development of complications. Patients not taking ATT and hence having longer duration of illness showed higher mortality and so a more radical and effective treatment regimen is required to eliminate TB early on during the onset of disease. ER -