Prevalence and clinical characteristics of tuberculosis in rheumatoid arthritis patients

Excerpt

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have been shown to have an increased susceptibility to the development of infections [1, 2]. The exact causes of this increased risk are unknown, but may be related to immunologic disturbances associated with the disease or to the immunosuppressive effects of agents used in its treatment [3, 4]. Recently, the question of whether patients with RA are at increased risk of developing tuberculosis compared with the general population has gained interest in light of reports of serious cases in patients receiving biologic therapies for the disease [5, 6]. Mycobacterium infection is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with RA, especially in prevalent areas [7, 8]. Tuberculosis infection in RA has been reported with an incidence rate of 2.3/1000 patient years, which is higher than in the general population [7]. According to a national study, the prevalence of active tuberculosis in Morocco is estimated to be 160–180/100,000 patients. The aim of this report was to assess the prevalence and the clinical features of tuberculosis infection in RA patients living in Morocco. …