PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Yen Jun Wong
AU  - Noorliza Mohd Noordin
AU  - Salmaan Keshavjee
AU  - Shaun Wen Huey Lee
TI  - Impact of latent tuberculosis infection on health and wellbeing: a systematic review and meta-analysis
AID  - 10.1183/16000617.0260-2020
DP  - 2021 Mar 31
TA  - European Respiratory Review
PG  - 200260
VI  - 30
IP  - 159
4099  - http://err.ersjournals.com/content/30/159/200260.short
4100  - http://err.ersjournals.com/content/30/159/200260.full
SO  - EUROPEAN RESPIRATORY REVIEW2021 Mar 31; 30
AB  - The impact of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) on health and wellbeing is not well understood. This review aims to evaluate the health and wellbeing of individuals with LTBI. A systematic literature search was performed to assess studies reporting patient-reported outcomes in LTBI management including health-related quality of life (HRQoL), health utilities, disease burden and experience of individuals with LTBI. A pooled analysis was performed to estimate the effect of LTBI on HRQoL.A total of 4464 studies were screened, of which 13 eligible articles describing nine unique studies were included for review. The HRQoL of individuals with LTBI and without tuberculosis (TB) infection were comparable, and better than patients with active TB disease. However, individuals with LTBI reported poorer mental health compared with individuals without TB infection (mean difference −4.16, 95% CI −7.45– −0.87; p=0.01). Qualitative studies suggest the presence of fear, anxiety and stigma in individuals with LTBI.This review highlights potential psychosocial challenges in individuals with LTBI despite the absence of clinical symptoms. While their quality of life was marginally affected, this could be evidence to support LTBI management in preventing TB re-activation and the severe consequences of active TB disease that affect all domains of HRQoL.The health and wellbeing of individuals with latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) requires considerable attention to overcome treatment-related challenges and concerns over stigma in an effort to improve LTBI care https://bit.ly/34e3lt