FREQUENCY OF BRONCHIAL ASTHMA IN POST-TUBERCULOSIS PATIENTS

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of bronchial asthma in patients withsuccessful treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB).METHODOLOGY: This was a cross sectional descriptive study conducted inthree teaching hospitals (i.e. Khalifa Gul Nawaz, District Headquarter and Womenand Children Teaching hospital) Bannu from 1st April 2011 to 15th October2013. All medical doctors were requested to send all the patients for assessmentto pulmonology outpatient department (OPD) presenting with cough, recurentwheezing and dyspnea, after completion of TB treatment for PTB. Aftercomplete history, thorough examination they were either excluded or includedin the study according to diagnostic criteria which was spirometry. Data wasanalyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 17.RESULTS: Three hundred and seventy three patients were interviewed, examinedand PFTSs were done. Out of them 80 were excluded and 293 were enrolledin the study. Males were 138(47%), females 155(53%) and asthma wasfound in 70(24%) of patients with 70(54%) females. Maximum numbers of patientswere between 15 and 45 years of age.CONCLUSION: Bronchial asthma is a common problem in patients with historyof successfully treated PTB in the past. Larger scale control studies should beconducted to verify the association and establishing the mechanism.