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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Infectious Disease Epidemiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 8643

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Dr. Fei Huang

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Guest Editor

National Center for TB Control and Prevention, China CDC, Beijing 102206, China
Interests: tuberculosis control and prevention; monitoring and evaluation; disease reporting and recording system; project management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Tuberculosis (TB) is an air-borne infectious disease with about 10 million new cases worldwide every year. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that attacks cells that help the body fight against infection, making a person more vulnerable to infections and diseases. Both TB and HIV have been considered the two important infectious diseases worldwide in terms of disease burden. TB is a very common opportunistic infection for people living with HIV, and TB/HIV coinfection offers reciprocal advantages to both pathogens: HIV infection increases the risk of active TB, and TB infection increases the level of HIV replication. Their coinfection has fueled the TB epidemic, presenting programmatic management and treatment challenges across the world.

According to global TB report of the World Health Organization (WHO), people living with HIV are 18 times more likely to develop active TB disease than people without HIV. WHO guidance recommends TB-preventive treatment for people living with HIV, and the END-TB strategy proposed collaborative TB/HIV activities, and management of comorbidities. To better address the issue of TB/HIV coinfection, we invite the submission of high-quality manuscripts for this Special Issue, especially those combing a high academic standard with good practice in approaching TB/HIV coinfection.

Dr. Fei Huang
Guest Editor

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Keywords

tuberculosis
HIV
coinfection
control
prevention
treatment

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 545 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Developing a Model for Integrating of Tuberculosis, Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Primary Healthcare Services in Oliver Reginald (O.R) Tambo District, Eastern Cape, South Africa

by Ntandazo Dlatu, Benjamin Longo-Mbenza, Kelechi Elizabeth Oladimeji and Teke Apalata

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(11), 5977; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20115977 - 28 May 2023

Viewed by 1824

Abstract

Despite the policy, frameworks for integration exist; integration of TB and HIV services is far from ideal in many resource-limited countries, including South Africa. Few studies have examined the advantages and disadvantages of integrated TB and HIV care in public health facilities, and even fewer have proposed conceptual models for proven integration. This study aims to fill this vacuum by describing the development of a paradigm for integrating TB, HIV, and patient services in a single facility and highlights the importance of TB-HIV services for greater accessibility under one roof. Development of the proposed model occurred in several phases that included assessment of the existing integration model for TB-HIV and synthesis of quantitative and qualitative data from the study sites, which were selected public health facilities in rural and peri-urban areas in the Oliver Reginald (O.R.) Tambo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Secondary data on clinical outcomes from 2009–2013 TB–HIV were obtained from various sources for the quantitative analysis of Part 1. Qualitative data included focus group discussions with patients and healthcare workers, which were analyzed thematically in Parts 2 and 3. The development of a potentially better model and the validation of this model shows that the district health system was strengthened by the guiding principles of the model, which placed a strong emphasis on inputs, processes, outcomes, and integration effects. The model is adaptable to different healthcare delivery systems but requires the support of patients, providers (professionals and institutions), payers, and policymakers to be successful. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tuberculosis and HIV)

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9 pages, 1384 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficacy and Risk Factors of Interferon-Gamma Release Assays among HIV-Positive Individuals

by Huifang Qin, Yiting Wang, Liwen Huang, Yan Huang, Jing Ye, Guijin Liang, Chongxing Zhou, Dabin Liang, Xiaoyan Liang, Yanlin Zhao and Mei Lin

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(5), 4556; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20054556 - 4 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1534

Abstract

Latent tuberculosis is prevalent in HIV-infected people and has an impact on the progression of AIDS. The aim of this study is to match a more accurate IGRA method for the better detection of latent tuberculosis infection in HIV patients. All 2394 patients enrolled were tested using three IGRA methods. The positive rate consistency of pairwise comparison and risk factors were analyzed. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was applied to evaluate the diagnostic value of T-SPOTTB. The positive rates of the three methods were statistically different (p < 0.001). The CD4⁺ T cell number statistically impacted the QuantiFERON and Wan Tai tests after the analysis with univariate logistic regression, while no statistical difference was observed in T-SPOT.TB. Additionally, there was a better sensitivity and specificity of T-SPOT.TB if the positive cut-off value of ESAT-6 and CFP-10 was 4.5 and 5.5, respectively. This study provides an insight into the IGRA methods and demonstrated that the positive response detected via QuantiFERON declined with decreased CD4⁺ T cells in the HIV-infected population; T-SPOT.TB functions independently of the CD4⁺ T cell level and Wan Tai was affected in some cases. This will be useful in the diagnosis of LTBI in the HIV-infected population, which will be a key step toward TB elimination in China. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tuberculosis and HIV)

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16 pages, 14261 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Epidemiological Characteristics of Notifiable Respiratory Infectious Diseases in Mainland China from 2010 to 2018

by Lele Deng, Yajun Han, Jinlong Wang, Haican Liu, Guilian Li, Dayan Wang and Guangxue He

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(5), 3946; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20053946 - 23 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1575

Abstract

Respiratory infectious diseases (RIDs) pose threats to people’s health, some of which are serious public health problems. The aim of our study was to explore epidemic situations regarding notifiable RIDs and the epidemiological characteristics of the six most common RIDs in mainland China. We first collected the surveillance data of all 12 statutory notifiable RIDs for 31 provinces in mainland China that reported between 2010 and 2018, and then the six most prevalent RIDs were selected to analyze their temporal, seasonal, spatiotemporal and population distribution characteristics. From 2010 to 2018, there were 13,985,040 notifiable cases and 25,548 deaths from RIDs in mainland China. The incidence rate of RIDs increased from 109.85/100,000 in 2010 to 140.85/100,000 in 2018. The mortality from RIDs ranged from 0.18/100,000 to 0.24/100,000. The most common RIDs in class B were pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), pertussis, and measles, while those in class C were seasonal influenza, mumps and rubella. From 2010 to 2018, the incidence rate of PTB and rubella decreased; however, pertussis and seasonal influenza increased, with irregular changes in measles and mumps. The mortality from PTB increased from 2015 to 2018, and the mortality from seasonal influenza changed irregularly. PTB was mainly prevalent among people over 15 years old, while the other five common RIDs mostly occurred among people younger than 15 years old. The incidence of the six common RIDs mostly occurred in winter and spring, and they were spatiotemporally clustered in different areas and periods. In conclusion, PTB, seasonal influenza and mumps remain as public health problems in China, suggesting that continuous government input, more precise interventions, and a high-tech digital/intelligent surveillance and warning system are required to rapidly identify emerging events and timely response. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tuberculosis and HIV)

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8 pages, 320 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sexual Behavior and Perceived Loneliness in Elderly People Living with HIV in China during the COVID-19 Pandemic

by Yushan Hou, Chang Cai, Houlin Tang, Yichen Jin, Fangfang Chen, Dandan Niu and Fan Lv

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(3), 2714; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032714 - 3 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1650

Abstract

Background: The proportion of elderly people living with HIV (PLHIV) is increasing in China. To advance targeted interventions and substantially improve their quality of life, we investigate indicators of loneliness and sexual behavior among elderly PLHIV in 10 districts/counties in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The demographic information and laboratory test results of the potential respondents were initially collected from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention. A two-stage stratified cluster sampling was used. The questionnaire survey was individually provided to all PLHIV aged +60. Results: We recruited 1017 valid respondents with a median age of 66 years (interquartile range of 63–71), of which 776 (76.3%) were male. Overall, 341 respondents (33.5%) lived alone, and 304 (29.9%) felt lonely. A total of 726 respondents (71.4%) informed others of their HIV diagnosis. Among the 726 respondents, children were the most common group with whom the older people shared their HIV infection status, accounting for 82.9%. Approximately 20% of the older PLHIV engaged in sexual behavior in the last year, and 70% reported not using condoms. A significantly greater risk of loneliness was found among the females (AOR = 1.542, CI: 1.084, 2.193), those who suffered discrimination from informed people (AOR = 4.719, CI: 2.986, 7.459), were diagnosed <1 year prior (AOR = 2.061, CI: 1.345, 3.156), those living alone (AOR = 2.314, CI: 1.632, 3.280), those having no friends (AOR = 1.779, CI: 1.327, 2.386), and those who had a divorced or widowed marital status (AOR = 1.686, CI: 1.174, 2.421). Conclusions: Compared with non-lonely participants, the lonely participants were more likely to have a rural registered residence, a lower education level, no friends, be divorced or widowed, live alone, and lack knowledge of smartphones and reproductive health. The influence of COVID-19 had caused social activities to be more confined to the community, which impacts elderly HIV patients suffering from severe discrimination within families and communities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tuberculosis and HIV)

9 pages, 1140 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation Study of xMAP TIER Assay on a Microsphere-Based Platform for Detecting First-Line Anti-Tuberculosis Drug Resistance

by Xichao Ou, Zhiguo Zhang, Bing Zhao, Zexuan Song, Shengfen Wang, Wencong He, Shaojun Pei, Dongxin Liu, Ruida Xing, Hui Xia and Yanlin Zhao

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(24), 17068; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192417068 - 19 Dec 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1376

Abstract

Early diagnosis of drug susceptibility for tuberculosis (TB) patients could guide the timely initiation of effective treatment. We evaluated a novel multiplex xMAP TIER (Tuberculosis-Isoniazid-Ethambutol-Rifampicin) assay based on the Luminex xMAP system to detect first-line anti-tuberculous drug resistance. Deoxyribonucleic acid samples from 353 Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates were amplified by multiplex polymerase chain reaction, followed by hybridization and analysis through the xMAP system. Compared with the broth microdilution method, the sensitivity and specificity of the xMAP TIER assay for detecting resistance was 94.9% (95%CI, 90.0–99.8%) and 98.9% (95%CI, 97.7–100.0%) for rifampicin; 89.1% (95%CI, 83.9–94.3%) and 100.0% (95%CI, 100.0–100.0%) for isoniazid; 82.1% (95% CI, 68.0–96.3%) and 99.7% (95% CI, 99.0–100.0%) for ethambutol. With DNA sequencing as the reference standard, the sensitivity and specificity of xMAP TIER for detecting resistance were 95.0% (95% CI, 90.2–99.8%) and 99.6% (95% CI, 98.9–100.0%) for rifampicin; 96.9% (95% CI, 93.8–99.9%) and 100.0% (95% CI, 100.0–100.0%) for isoniazid; 86.1% (95% CI, 74.8–97.4%) and 100.0% (95% CI, 100.0–100.0%) for ethambutol. The results achieved showed that the xMAP TIER assay had good performance for detecting first-line anti-tuberculosis drug resistance, and it has the potential to diagnose drug-resistant tuberculosis more accurately due to the addition of more optimal design primers and probes on open architecture xMAP system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tuberculosis and HIV)

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