Tuberc Respir Dis.  2006 Nov;61(5):440-446. 10.4046/trd.2006.61.5.440.

Clinical Characteristics of Tuberculosis in Liver or Heart Transplant Recipients

• Jung H
• Oh YM
• Lee SD
• Kim WS
• Kim DS
• Kim WD
• Kim JJ
• Lee SG
• Shim TS

• KMID: 1970249
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4046/trd.2006.61.5.440

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Post-transplant tuberculosis (TB) is a serious complication in solid organ transplant recipients worldwide, However there is little or no data on TB in liver or heart transplant recipients in Korea.
METHODS
The incidence and clinical characteristics of TB of 730 patients who had undergone a liver transplant in a university hospital in Korea between 1992 and 2004, and 110 heart transplant recipients in the same period, were reviewed retrospectively.
RESULTS
The incidence of TB was 1.5%(11/730) and 2.7%(3/110) in the liver and heart transplantation, respectively. The median time from the transplant to the development of TB was 8.4 months(1.0-30.8). and the mean time from the symptoms to the diagnosis of TB was 2.1+/-3.6 months(0.3-13.2). Nine patients (65%) had pulmonary TB and five (35%) had extrapulmonary TB. The leukopenia and positive HbeAg at the baseline, post-transplant diabetes mellitus, and chronic rejection were associated with the development of TB in the liver transplant recipients. Ten patients were treated with a 4-drug standard regimen for a mean duration of 7.8+/-3.5 months. One patients died of TB.
CONCLUSION
The incidence of TB in liver or heart transplant recipients was similar to that reported in other countries with a similar TB-burden.

Keyword

Tuberculosis; Liver transplantation; Heart transplantation

MeSH Terms

Diabetes Mellitus
Diagnosis
Heart Transplantation
Heart*
Hepatitis B e Antigens
Humans
Incidence
Korea
Leukopenia
Liver Transplantation
Liver*
Retrospective Studies
Transplantation*
Transplants
Tuberculosis*
Hepatitis B e Antigens

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