HIV TB coinfection - perspectives from India.

Introduction: HIV and tuberculosis (TB) are two of the most challenging infections faced by humanity and place immense burden on health care systems worldwide. Both HIV and TB impact one another's progression.Areas covered: HIV is the most important risk factor for progression of latent TB to active disease. TB is the most common cause of death among People Living with HIV (PLHIV). Timely detection of TB among PLHIV and screening for HIV among TB patients, early initiation of ART and ATT among coinfected persons, provision of CPT and TB Preventive therapy along with control of air-borne infection are some of the key activities to reduce morbidity and mortality among coinfected persons. Despite many challenges, the collaboration between two programs has yielded good results and globally more than 7.3 million lives of PLHIV have been saved globally through scale-up of collaborative TB/HIV activities since 2005. The review looked into key features of both programs that are the collaboration strategies and challenges that still need to be addressed.Expert opinion: The overarching principle for effective implementation of collaborative activities is integration of the TB and HIV national programs right from policy making to service delivery and monitoring.

Thyroid function in patients with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Albumin is the major protein excreted in urine in patients with nephrotic syndrome (NS). However, low-molecular-weight proteins including some binding proteins are also excreted. Thyroid hormone and its binding globulins are excreted in urine in excess in nephrotic syndrome. Therefore, it has been postulated that patients with nephrotic syndrome may show hypothyroidism, subclinical or overt. METHODS: In this prospective observational study, patients of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome aged 1-40 years of both gender were included. Serum T3, T4 and TSH were assayed at diagnosis and repeated at 12 weeks or at remission whichever was earlier. Renal biopsy was performed as required. RESULTS: Among 100 patients taken for analysis (42 children, 58 adult), 30 cases were of first episode, 40 were of frequent relapse/steroid-dependent NS, and 30 patients had steroid-resistant NS (SRNS). Three (3%) cases had overt hypothyroidism and 18 (18%) patients had subclinical hypothyroidism. Most hypothyroid cases belonged to SRNS subgroup. Mean Serum T3, T4 and TSH values showed significant improvement in remission in comparison to nephrosis state (P < 0.01). Serum TSH had significant positive correlation (r = 0.391, P < 0.01) with 24-h proteinuria and negative correlation with serum albumin (r = - 0.303, P < 0.01) in nephrosis. CONCLUSION: Hypothyroidism is common among nephrotic syndrome patients especially in SRNS subgroup. Therefore, routine screening is recommended in steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome patients.

Mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on progress towards ending tuberculosis in the WHO South-East Asia Region.

Almost half of the deaths worldwide caused by tuberculosis in 2018 occurred in the World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Region, home to around a quarter of the global population. Maintaining robust progress in this region is therefore essential if the global goal of ending the tuberculosis epidemic is to be realized. Substantial gains have been made in the region, but the threat to health worldwide posed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic includes not only the direct effects of the pandemic but also the potential eclipsing of the global tuberculosis emergency. The results of modelling studies present stark warnings of a reversal of years of progress and a significant resurgence in deaths from tuberculosis. The COVID-19 pandemic has had variable impacts in the WHO South-East Asia Region to date, but in the countries most affected there has been targeted diversion and repurposing of tuberculosis services, health-care workers and diagnostic equipment. The combined effects of COVID-19, containment measures and fragmentation of tuberculosis services have resulted in delays in diagnosis or non-diagnosis and disruption in treatment resulting in increased morbidity, mortality, transmission and drug resistance. Countries of the region have made attempts to ensure continuity of services and civil society and nongovernmental organizations have instituted a range of innovative mechanisms to support national programmes. However, a comprehensive approach - including scaling up successful initiatives, empowering community leadership, harnessing digital tools, and implementing easily accessible cash transfers and nutrition support - will be critical to success. As COVID-19 recedes, countries will need "catch-up plans" to deploy supplementary measures to address the increased tuberculosis burden. Urgent, targeted and agile responses have the potential to mitigate and reverse the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tuberculosis in South-East Asia.

The potential impact of preventive therapy against tuberculosis in the WHO South-East Asian Region: a modelling approach.

BACKGROUND: The prevention of tuberculosis (TB) is key for accelerating current, slow declines in TB burden. The 2018 World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines on eligibility for preventive therapy to treat latent TB infection (LTBI) include people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLHIV), household contacts of TB patients including children, and those with clinical conditions including silicosis, dialysis, transplantation, etc. and other country-specific groups. We aimed to estimate the potential impact of full implementation of these guidelines in the WHO South-East Asian (SEA) Region, which bears the largest burden of TB and LTBI amongst the WHO regions. METHODS: We developed mathematical models of TB transmission dynamics, calibrated individually to each of the 11 countries in the region. We modelled preventive therapy in the absence of other TB interventions. As an alternative comparator, reflecting ongoing developments in TB control in the region, we also simulated improvements in the treatment cascade for active TB, including private sector engagement and intensified case-finding. Relative to both scenarios, for each country in the region, we projected TB cases and deaths averted between 2020 and 2030, by full uptake of preventive therapy, defined as comprehensive coverage amongst eligible populations as per WHO guidelines, and assuming outcomes consistent with clinical trials. We also performed sensitivity analysis to illustrate impact under less-than-optimal conditions. RESULTS: At the regional level, full uptake of preventive therapy amongst identified risk groups would reduce annual incidence rates in 2030 by 8.30% (95% CrI 6.48-10.83) relative to 2015, in the absence of any additional interventions. If implemented against a backdrop of improved TB treatment cascades, preventive therapy would achieve an incremental 6.93 percentage points (95% CrI 5.81-8.51) of reduction in annual incidence rates, compared to 2015. At the regional level, the numbers of individuals with latent TB infection that need to be treated to avert 1 TB case is 64 (95% CrI 55-74). Sensitivity analysis illustrates that results for impact are roughly proportional to 'effective coverage' (the product of actual coverage and effectiveness of the regimen). CONCLUSIONS: Full implementation of WHO guidelines is important for ending TB in the SEA Region. Although future strategies will need to be expanded to the population level, to achieve large declines in TB incidence, the uptake of current tools can offer a valuable step in this direction.

Ending TB in Southeast Asia: current resources are not enough.

The Southeast Asia Region continues to battle tuberculosis (TB) as one of its most severe health and development challenges. Unless there is a substantial increase in investments for TB prevention, diagnosis, care and treatment, there will be catastrophic effects for the region. The uncontrolled TB burden impacts socioeconomic development and increase of drug resistance in the region. Based on epidemiological inputs from a mathematical model, a costing analysis estimates that the desired targets of ending TB are achievable with additional interventions, and critical thresholds require an increase in spending by almost double the current levels. The data source for financial allocation to TB programmes is the report submitted by countries to WHO, while projections are based on modelling. The model accounts for funding needs for all strategies based on published data and accounts for programme and patient costs. This paper delineates the resource needs, availability and gaps of ending TB in the region. It is estimated that close to US$2 billion per year are needed in the region for TB-related activities for a meaningful bending of the incidence curve towards ending TB.

Strategies for ending tuberculosis in the South-East Asian Region: A modelling approach.

Background & objectives: To support recent political commitments to end tuberculosis (TB) in the World Health Organization South-East Asian Region (SEAR), there is a need to understand by what measures, and with what investment, these goals could be reached. These questions were addressed by using mathematical models of TB transmission by doing the analysis on a country-by-country basis in SEAR. Methods: A dynamical model of TB transmission was developed, in consultation with each of the 11 countries in the SEAR. Three intervention scenarios were examined: (i) strengthening basic TB services (including private sector engagement), (ii) accelerating TB case-finding and notification, and (iii) deployment of a prognostic biomarker test by 2025, to guide mass preventive therapy of latent TB infection. Each scenario was built on the preceding ones, in successive combination. Results: Comprehensive improvements in basic TB services by 2020, in combination with accelerated case-finding to increase TB detection by at least two-fold by 2020, could lead to a reduction in TB incidence rates in SEAR by 67.3 per cent [95% credible intervals (CrI) 65.3-69.8] and TB deaths by 80.9 per cent (95% CrI 77.9-84.7) in 2035, relative to 2015. These interventions alone would require an additional investment of at least US$ 25 billion. However, their combined effect is insufficient to reach the end TB targets of 80 per cent by 2030 and 90 per cent by 2035. Model projections show how additionally, deployment of a biomarker test by 2025 could end TB in the region by 2035. Targeting specific risk groups, such as slum dwellers, could mitigate the coverage needed in the general population, to end TB in the Region. Interpretation & conclusions: While the scale-up of currently available strategies may play an important role in averting TB cases and deaths in the Region, there will ultimately be a need for novel, mass preventive measures, to meet the end TB goals. Achieving these impacts will require a substantial escalation in funding for TB control in the Region.

Mass primaquine preventive treatment for control of Plasmodium vivax malaria in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea: a country success story.

In 1998, the resurgence of Plasmodium vivax malaria in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea quickly increased to an epidemic, with 601 013 cases reported I during 1999-2001. The introduction of mass primaquine preventive treatment (MPPT) in 2002 was followed by a rapid reduction of malaria disease burden. The intervention has been well accepted by the community. Doctors were part of a strong functional health system with the ability to deliver interventions at the household J level. MPPT was considered for control of malaria after a study conducted in two J neighbouring endemic villages (ris) involving 320 healthy adults demonstrated that presence of parasitaemia was significantly lower among those receiving MPPT than those who did not. Similarly, in a mass blood survey conducted in the study sites during May, 2002 involving 5138 persons in study and 4215 in comparison areas, the total positive results were 7-10 times rarer in the treatment group both before and after the malaria transmission season. In addition, the number of malaria cases in the MPPT treatment ris was strikingly lower than control ris in every month during the malaria transmission season of 2002. The prevalence of G6PDD deficiency in DPR Korea is low, haemolytic events are rare and deaths due to MPPT have not been reported. MPPT in itself is a powerful intervention and the decision to deploy it depends on the epidemiology of malaria, urgency of malaria control and resources available in the country.