PLoS ONE (Jan 2021)

A prospective cross-sectional study of tuberculosis in elderly Hispanics reveals that BCG vaccination at birth is protective whereas diabetes is not a risk factor.

  • Julia M Scordo,
  • Génesis P Aguillón-Durán,
  • Doris Ayala,
  • Ana Paulina Quirino-Cerrillo,
  • Eminé Rodríguez-Reyna,
  • Francisco Mora-Guzmán,
  • Jose A Caso,
  • Eder Ledezma-Campos,
  • Larry S Schlesinger,
  • Jordi B Torrelles,
  • Joanne Turner,
  • Blanca I Restrepo

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255194
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 16, no. 7
p. e0255194

Abstract

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BackgroundAging increases the risk of tuberculosis (TB) and its adverse outcomes, but most studies are based on secondary analyses, and few are in Hispanics. Diabetes is a risk factor for TB in adults, but its contribution in the elderly is unknown. We aimed to identify the role of diabetes and other risk factors for TB in elderly Hispanics.MethodsCross-sectional study among newly-diagnosed TB patients, recent contacts (ReC), or community controls (CoC) totaling 646 participants, including 183 elderly (>60 years; 43 TB, 80 ReC, 60 CoC) and 463 adults (18 to 50 years; 80 TB, 301 ReC and 82 CoC). Host characteristics associated with TB and latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection (LTBI) were identified in the elderly by univariable and confirmed by multivariable logistic regression.ResultsLTBI was more prevalent among the elderly CoC (55% vs. 23.2% in adults; pConclusionsWe report novel distinctions in TB risk factors in the elderly vs. adults, notably in diabetes and BCG vaccination at birth. Further studies are warranted to address disparities in this vulnerable, understudied population.