Clinical characteristics of tuberculosis in patients with liver cirrhosis

Background and objectives: Patients with liver cirrhosis are likely to be susceptible to tuberculosis (TB) because of immune system dysfunction. The aim of this study was to elucidate the clinical characteristics and treatment responses in TB patients with cirrhosis. Methods: Cases were patients with TB detected during their follow up for liver cirrhosis over a 4-year period. Controls were randomly selected patients with TB but no liver disease, matched to cases by age and gender in a 3:1 ratio. Results: Thirty-six cases and 108 controls were enrolled. Extrapulmonary TB was more common in cases than controls (31% vs 12%, P= 0.02). Clinical and radiographic manifestations and response to treatment did not differ between the two groups. The frequency of hepatotoxicity was higher in the cases than in the controls who were treated with a regimen containing rifampicin and isoniazid, although the difference was not statistically significant (27% vs 10%, P = 0.079). Conclusions: TB patients with liver cirrhosis show extrapulmonary involvement more frequently. Patients with pulmonary TB and cirrhosis usually respond well to anti-TB treatment although appear to present more frequently with treatment-related hepatotoxicity.