TUBERCULOSIS TREATMENT OUTCOMES: A FIFTEEN YEAR COHORT STUDY IN JOS NORTH AND MANGU, PLATEAU STATE, NORTH - CENTRAL NIGERIA
Abstract Background Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease with a major global health problem; being the tenth leading cause of death worldwide, and the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. Nigeria is among the countries with high burden of tuberculosis and the highest global mortality rate. Medication adherence has been shown to have profound effect on other treatment outcomes. Objective To examine a fifteen-year cohort of tuberculosis treatment outcomes in Jos North and Mangu Local Government Areas of Plateau State. Methods The study was done in five treatment centers which account for more than half of data for tuberculosis patients in Plateau State, North-Central Nigeria. The retrospective study was done from 2001 to 2015, where TB patient records who had completed treatment were evaluated. Treatment outcomes were classified as successful (cured, treatment completed) or unsuccessful (non-adherent, treatment failure or death) and analyzed using binomial logistic regression. Results Males composed 58.1% of the population (10,156). Mean age ±SD was 35.5±15.5 years. The overall treatment success rate was 67.4%; non-adherence/defaulting rate was 18.5%, with majority of patients defaulting at the end of intensive phase of treatment; sputum conversion rate was 72.8% and mortality rate was 7.5%. A decrease in successful treatment outcomes from 83.8% to 64.4%, with a corresponding increase in unsuccessful treatment outcomes was observed. The Predictors of medication non-adherence were patients with unknown HIV status (OR 4.29, 95% CI: 3.74-4.91, p < 0.001); being male (OR 1.15, CI: 1.37-1.66, p = 0.008) and having a history of non-adherence (OR 2.27, CI: 1.34-3.87, p = 0.002) and treatment failure (OR 2.83, CI: 0.98 – 8.19, p = 0.05). Conclusion Underlying reasons for medication non-adherence and treatment failure identified should be resolved by the patient, treatment supporter and health worker. Increased awareness and education on voluntary counseling and testing of HIV among TB patients is advocated, particularly among the male population.