Tuberculosis treatment outcomes in patients with resistant tuberculosis at a district hospital in Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa

Abstract

This study purported to investigate factors associated with treatment outcomes among MDR-TB and XDR-TB patients treated at Greytown hospital. This was a cross-sectional study based on a review of medical records of patients that have been treated at Greytown hospital for drug resistant tuberculosis from January 2011 to December 2012. A data collection form designed for the study was used. The data that was collated included socio-demographic variables, clinical data including details of treatment given and adverse effects as well as outcomes of treatment. Descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated. Overall, 127 records were found that met the inclusion criteria for this study during the study period. The mean age of patients was 36.9±11.9 years, ranging from 12 to 82 years. Based on the median age of 34 years, 54.3% were over 34 years old. The majority of patients were females (56.7%), unemployed (89.8%) and the marital status of (78.7%) patients was not recorded in the files. Overall, 55.1% were females aged 34 years and older. The majority of patients suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis; only 3 cases (2.4%) were extra-pulmonary, while 72 (56.7%) suffered from multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), and 55 (43.3%) had extended drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB). They took their treatment fairly well as about 70% of them adhered to treatment. Overall, the outcomes of treatment success was poor as only 29.9% had completed the treatment and confirmed cured, while 18.1% had died. In addition to being unemployed, clinical factors associated with being cured were namely, taking the treatment for the correct duration and adhering to treatment. On the contrary, failing to take the treatment correctly was associated with death. In conclusion, the treatment success among patients with resistant tuberculosis was 29.9%. Adherence to treatment for the correct duration of treatment was significantly associated with the success of treatment.