L. S. Chauhan

Tuberculosis control and elimination 2010–50: cure, care, and social development

Rapid expansion of the standardised approach to tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment that is recommended by WHO allowed more than 36 million people to be cured between 1995 and 2008, averting up to 6 million deaths. Yet tuberculosis remains a severe global public health threat. There are more than 9 million new cases every year worldwide, and the incidence rate is falling at less than 1% per year. Although the overall target related to the Millennium Development Goals of halting and beginning to reverse the epidemic might have already been reached in 2004, the more important long-term elimination target set for 2050 will not be met with present strategies and instruments. Several key challenges persist. Many vulnerable people do not have access to affordable services of sufficient quality. Technologies for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention are old and inadequate. Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis is a serious threat in many settings. HIV/AIDS continues to fuel the tuberculosis epidemic, especially in Africa. Furthermore, other risk factors and underlying social determinants help to maintain tuberculosis in the community. Acceleration of the decline towards elimination of this disease will need invigorated actions in four broad areas: continued scale-up of early diagnosis and proper treatment for all forms of tuberculosis in line with the Stop TB Strategy; development and enforcement of bold health-system policies; establishment of links with the broader development agenda; and promotion and intensification of research towards innovations.

Improving tuberculosis control through public-private collaboration in India: literature review

Abstract Objective To review the characteristics of public-private mix projects in India and their effect on case notification and treatment outcomes for tuberculosis. Design Literature review. Data sources Review of surveillance records from Indian tuberculosis programme project, evaluation reports, and medical literature for public-private mix projects in India. Data extraction Project characteristics, tuberculosis case notification of new patients with sputum smear results positive for acid fast bacilli, and treatment outcome. Data synthesis Of 24 identified public-private mix projects, data were available from 14 (58%), involving private practitioners, corporations, and non-governmental organisations. In all reviewed projects, the public sector tuberculosis programme provided training and supervision of private providers. Among the five projects with available data on historical controls, case notification rates were higher after implementation of a public-private mix project. Among seven projects involving private practitioners, 2796 of 12 147 (23%) new patients positive for acid fast bacilli were attributed to private providers. Corporate based and non-governmental organisations served as the main source for tuberculosis programme services in seven project areas, detecting 9967 new patients positive for acid fast bacilli. In nine of 12 projects with data on treatment outcomes, private providers exceeded the programme target of 85% treatment success for new patients positive for acid fast bacilli. Conclusions Public-private mix activities were associated with increased case notification, while maintaining acceptable treatment outcomes. Collaborations between public and private providers of health care hold considerable potential to improve tuberculosis control in India.

Risk factors for treatment default among re-treatment tuberculosis patients in India, 2006.

Setting Under Indias Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP), >15% of previously-treated patients in the reported 2006 patient cohort defaulted from anti-tuberculosis treatment. Objective To assess the timing, characteristics, and risk factors for default amongst re-treatment TB patients. Methodology For this case-control study, in 90 randomly-selected programme units treatment records were abstracted from all 2006 defaulters from the RNTCP re-treatment regimen (cases), with one consecutively-selected non-defaulter per case. Patients who interrupted anti-tuberculosis treatment for >2 months were classified as defaulters. Results 1,141 defaulters and 1,189 non-defaulters were included. The median duration of treatment prior to default was 81 days (25%–75% interquartile range 44–117 days) and documented retrieval efforts after treatment interruption were inadequate. Defaulters were more likely to have been male (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2–1.7), have previously defaulted anti-tuberculosis treatment (aOR 1.3 95%CI 1.1–1.6], have previous treatment from non-RNTCP providers (AOR 1.3, 95%CI 1.0–1.6], or have public health facility-based treatment observation (aOR 1.3, 95%CI 1.1–1.6). Conclusions Amongst the large number of re-treatment patients in India, default occurs early and often. Improved pre-treatment counseling and community-based treatment provision may reduce default rates. Efforts to retrieve treatment interrupters prior to default require strengthening.

Tuberculosis control in India

We were disappointed and not a little surprised by your news article regarding progress in tuberculosis control in India in 2002. We strongly disagree with the content of the article. Tuberculosis remains a serious public-health problem in India accounting for nearly one-third of the global burden. Despite the introduction of the National Tuberculosis Control Programme in 1962 India has about 2 million new cases every year of which nearly 1 million are infectious smear-positive pulmonary cases. One person dies from tuberculosis in India every minute—more than 1000 every day and 450 000 every year. Indias tuberculosis problem is further compounded by an estimated 3.97 million people infected with HIV tuberculosis being the most common opportunistic disease amongst HIV-infected people. However the news is not all bad. Recognising the devastating socio-economic impact of this airborne disease in 1993 the government of India embarked on an ambitious revised tuberculosis-control programme based on the WHO-recommended directly observed therapy short-course (DOTS) strategy with three pilot sites covering a population of 4.2 million. (excerpt)

Association of acute toxic encephalopathy with litchi consumption in an outbreak in Muzaffarpur, India, 2014: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND Outbreaks of unexplained illness frequently remain under-investigated. In India, outbreaks of an acute neurological illness with high mortality among children occur annually in Muzaffarpur, the countrys largest litchi cultivation region. In 2014, we aimed to investigate the cause and risk factors for this illness. METHODS In this hospital-based surveillance and nested age-matched case-control study, we did laboratory investigations to assess potential infectious and non-infectious causes of this acute neurological illness. Cases were children aged 15 years or younger who were admitted to two hospitals in Muzaffarpur with new-onset seizures or altered sensorium. Age-matched controls were residents of Muzaffarpur who were admitted to the same two hospitals for a non-neurologic illness within seven days of the date of admission of the case. Clinical specimens (blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and urine) and environmental specimens (litchis) were tested for evidence of infectious pathogens, pesticides, toxic metals, and other non-infectious causes, including presence of hypoglycin A or methylenecyclopropylglycine (MCPG), naturally-occurring fruit-based toxins that cause hypoglycaemia and metabolic derangement. Matched and unmatched (controlling for age) bivariate analyses were done and risk factors for illness were expressed as matched odds ratios and odds ratios (unmatched analyses). FINDINGS Between May 26, and July 17, 2014, 390 patients meeting the case definition were admitted to the two referral hospitals in Muzaffarpur, of whom 122 (31%) died. On admission, 204 (62%) of 327 had blood glucose concentration of 70 mg/dL or less. 104 cases were compared with 104 age-matched hospital controls. Litchi consumption (matched odds ratio [mOR] 9·6 [95% CI 3·6 - 24]) and absence of an evening meal (2·2 [1·2-4·3]) in the 24 h preceding illness onset were associated with illness. The absence of an evening meal significantly modified the effect of eating litchis on illness (odds ratio [OR] 7·8 [95% CI 3·3-18·8], without evening meal; OR 3·6 [1·1-11·1] with an evening meal). Tests for infectious agents and pesticides were negative. Metabolites of hypoglycin A, MCPG, or both were detected in 48 [66%] of 73 urine specimens from case-patients and none from 15 controls; 72 (90%) of 80 case-patient specimens had abnormal plasma acylcarnitine profiles, consistent with severe disruption of fatty acid metabolism. In 36 litchi arils tested from Muzaffarpur, hypoglycin A concentrations ranged from 12·4 μg/g to 152·0 μg/g and MCPG ranged from 44·9 μg/g to 220·0 μg/g. INTERPRETATION Our investigation suggests an outbreak of acute encephalopathy in Muzaffarpur associated with both hypoglycin A and MCPG toxicity. To prevent illness and reduce mortality in the region, we recommended minimising litchi consumption, ensuring receipt of an evening meal and implementing rapid glucose correction for suspected illness. A comprehensive investigative approach in Muzaffarpur led to timely public health recommendations, underscoring the importance of using systematic methods in other unexplained illness outbreaks. FUNDING US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Characteristics and Programme-Defined Treatment Outcomes among Childhood Tuberculosis (TB) Patients under the National TB Programme in Delhi

Background Childhood tuberculosis (TB) patients under Indias Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP) are managed using diagnostic algorithms and directly observed treatment with intermittent thrice-weekly short-course treatment regimens for 6–8 months. The assignment into pre-treatment weight bands leads to drug doses (milligram per kilogram) that are lower than current World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for some patients. Objectives The main aim of our study was to describe the baseline characteristics and treatment outcomes reported under RNTCP for registered childhood (age <15 years) TB patients in Delhi. Additionally, we compared the reported programmatic treatment completion rates between children treated as per WHO recommended anti-TB drug doses with those children treated with anti-TB drug doses below that recommended in WHO guidelines. Methods For this cross-sectional retrospective study, we reviewed programme records of all 1089 TB patients aged <15 years registered for TB treatment from January to June, 2008 in 6 randomly selected districts of Delhi. WHO disease classification and treatment outcome definitions are used by RNTCP, and these were extracted as reported in programme records. Results and Conclusions Among 1074 patients with records available, 651 (61%) were females, 122 (11%) were <5 years of age, 1000 (93%) were new cases, and 680 (63%) had extra-pulmonary TB (EP-TB)—most commonly peripheral lymph node disease [310 (46%)]. Among 394 pulmonary TB (PTB) cases, 165 (42%) were sputum smear-positive. The overall reported treatment completion rate was 95%. Similar reported treatment completion rates were found in all subgroups assessed, including those patients whose drug dosages were lower than that currently recommended by WHO. Further studies are needed to assess the reasons for the low proportion of under-5 years of age TB case notifications, address challenges in reaching all childhood TB patients by RNTCP, the accuracy of diagnosis, and the clinical validity of reported programme defined treatment completion.

Source of previous treatment for re-treatment TB cases registered under the National TB control Programme, India, 2010.

Background In 2009, nearly half (289,756) of global re-treatment TB notifications are from India; no nationally-representative data on the source of previous treatment was available to inform strategies for improvement of initial TB treatment outcome. Objectives To assess the source of previous treatment for re-treatment TB patients registered under Indias Revised National TB control Programme (RNTCP). Methodology A nationally-representative cross sectional study was conducted in a sample of 36 randomly-selected districts. All consecutively registered retreatment TB patients during a defined 15-day period in these 36 districts were contacted and the information on the source of previous treatment sought. Results Data was collected from all 1712 retreatment TB patients registered in the identified districts during the study period. The data includes information on 595 ‘relapse’ cases, 105 ‘failure’ cases, 437 ‘treatment after default (TAD)’ cases and 575 ‘re-treatment others’ cases. The source of most recent previous anti-tuberculosis therapy for 754 [44% (95% CI, 38.2%–49.9%)] of the re-treatment TB patients was from providers outside the TB control programme. A higher proportion of patients registered as TAD (64%) and ‘retreatment others’ (59%) were likely to be treated outside the National Programme, when compared to the proportion among ‘relapse’ (22%) or ‘failure’ (6%). Extrapolated to national registration, of the 292,972 re-treatment registrations in 2010, 128,907 patients would have been most recently treated outside the national programme. Conclusions Nearly half of the re-treatment cases registered with the national programme were most recently treated outside the programme setting. Enhanced efforts towards extending treatment support and supervision to patients treated by private sector treatment providers are urgently required to improve the quality of treatment and reduce the numbers of patients with recurrent disease. In addition, reasons for the large number of recurrent TB cases from those already treated by the national programme require urgent detailed investigation.

Feasibility of Provider-Initiated HIV Testing and Counselling of Tuberculosis Patients Under the TB Control Programme in Two Districts of South India

Background Provider-initiated HIV testing and counselling (PITC) is internationally recommended for tuberculosis (TB) patients, but the feasibility, effectiveness, and impact of this policy on the TB programme in India are unknown. We evaluated PITC of TB patients across two districts in India considered to have generalized HIV epidemics, Tiruchirappalli (population 2.5 million) and Mysore (population 2.8 million). Methodology/Principal Findings Starting June 2007, healthcare providers in both districts were instructed to ascertain HIV status for all TB patients, and refer those with unknown HIV status to the nearest Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC)—often in the same facility—for counselling and voluntary HIV testing. All TB patients registered from June 2007 to March 2008 were followed prospectively. Field investigators assessed PITC practices and abstracted data from routine TB programme records and HIV counselling registers to determine the proportion of TB patients appropriately evaluated for HIV infection. Patient records were traced to determine the efficiency of referral links to HIV care and antiretroviral treatment (ART). Between July 2007 and March 2008, 5299 TB patients were registered in both study districts. Of the 4701 with unknown HIV status at the time of TB treatment initiation, 3368 (72%) were referred to an ICTC, and 3111 (66%) were newly tested for HIV. PITC implementation resulted in the ascertainment of HIV status for 3709/5299 (70%) of TB patients, and detected 200 cases with previously undiagnosed HIV infection. Overall, 468 (8.8%) of all registered TB patients were HIV-infected; 177 (37%) were documented to have also received any ART. Conclusions With implementation of PITC in India, HIV status was successfully ascertained for 70% of TB patients. Previously undiagnosed HIV-infection was detected in 6.4% of those TB patients newly tested, enabling referral for life-saving anti-retroviral treatment. ART uptake, however, was poor, suggesting that PITC implementation should include measures to strengthen and support ART referral, evaluation, and initiation.

Lot Quality Assurance Sampling of Sputum Acid-Fast Bacillus Smears for Assessing Sputum Smear Microscopy Centers

ABSTRACT Assessment of 12 microscopy centers in a tuberculosis unit by blinded checking of eight sputum smears selected by using a lot quality assurance sampling (LQAS) method and by unblinded checking of all positive and five negative slides, among the slides examined in a month in a microscopy centre, revealed that the LQAS method can be implemented in the field to monitor the performance of acid-fast bacillus microscopy centers in national tuberculosis control programs.

Kyasanur Forest Disease Outbreak and Vaccination Strategy, Shimoga District, India, 2013–2014

We investigated a Kyasanur Forest disease outbreak in Karnataka, India during December 2013–April 2014. Surveillance and retrospective study indicated low vaccine coverage, low vaccine effectiveness, and spread of disease to areas beyond those selected for vaccination and to age groups not targeted for vaccination. To control disease, vaccination strategies need to be reviewed.