Korean J Med.  2010 Dec;79(6):646-651.

Incidence of tuberculosis in Korean diabetics: Comparison with that in non-diabetic hypertensive subjects

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Internal Medicine, Eulji University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. hoonakr@eulji.ac.kr

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS
Tuberculosis remains a major cause of mortality in South Korea, and the prevalence of diabetes is also increasing rapidly. Diabetes is a well known risk factor for tuberculosis. However, the risk varies according to race and regional prevalence. We assessed the potential impact of diabetes as a risk factor for tuberculosis in South Korea.
METHODS
We performed a retrospective cohort study in a secondary referral hospital. The incidence of tuberculosis in a diabetic cohort was compared with that in a non-diabetic hypertensive cohort for 6 years. Diabetics who visited our diabetic clinic and non-diabetic hypertensive patients who visited our cardiology clinic from Jan 2004 to April 2004 were assigned to the diabetic cohort and the non-diabetic hypertensive cohort, respectively. Patients in each cohort had to receive medications to control their diseases. Patients with end-stage renal disease, malignancy, or HIV infection were excluded. Relative risk and tuberculosis-free survival rates of each cohort were calculated.
RESULTS
The incidences of tuberculosis were 32 in the diabetic cohort (n=2491; mean age, 59.1+/-11.8 years; 44.5% male) and ten in the non-diabetic hypertensive cohort (n=1885; mean age, 59.9+/-12.8 years; 41.6% male). The estimated annual incidences per 100,000 persons were 282.8 and 112.9, respectively. The relative risk was 2.220 (p=0.028; 95% confidence interval, 1.090~4.523). However, no significant difference in cumulative tuberculosis-free survival rate was observed between the cohorts (p=0.075).
CONCLUSIONS
A trend for a higher incidence of tuberculosis existed in diabetics, as compared to non-diabetic hypertensive patients, among a Korean population.

Keyword

Diabetes mellitus; Tuberculosis; Incidence

MeSH Terms

Cardiology
Cohort Studies
Continental Population Groups
Diabetes Mellitus
HIV Infections
Humans
Incidence
Kidney Failure, Chronic
Prevalence
Referral and Consultation
Republic of Korea
Retrospective Studies
Risk Factors
Survival Rate
Tuberculosis
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