Barriers and delays in tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment services: does gender matter?

Background. Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global public health problem with known gender-related disparities. We reviewed the quantitative evidence for gender-related differences in accessing TB services from symptom onset to treatment initiation.

Low tuberculosis knowledge among HIV-infected patients in a high HIV prevalence region within southeast India.

Setting: A private multispecialty hospital in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Methods: A survey of knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions adapted from a pretested questionnaire was administered to 128 HIV-infected adults, from July to August 2008.

Results: A total of 31% had not heard of tuberculosis (TB), with 15 (38%) currently receiving anti-TB therapy or had received it in the past.

Early mortality in adults initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART) in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC): a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: We systematically reviewed observational studies of early mortality post-antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) in Asia, Africa, and Central and South America, as defined by the World Bank, to summarize what is known.

Methods And Findings: Studies published in English between January 1996 and December 2010 were searched in Medline and EMBASE. Three independent reviewers examined studies of mortality within one year post-ART.

Nutrition and disease progression pre-highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and post-HAART: can good nutrition delay time to HAART and affect response to HAART?

Several studies have investigated a variety of nutritional supplementation interventions in adults with HIV. In this narrative review, we summarize the evidence from 31 clinical trials that explore clinical benefits of macronutrient and micronutrient supplementation in this population while attempting to answer the question of whether good nutrition can delay the time to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) initiation and response. We focused on trials published in English between 1990 and 2010 that reported on CD4 count, viral load, and disease progression or survival.

Symptom screening among HIV-infected pregnant women is acceptable and has high negative predictive value for active tuberculosis.

We evaluated tuberculosis (TB) screening among 799 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected pregnant women in India. Eleven (1.4%) had active TB.