Source: The post is based on the article “Trial done in India shows nutrition support prevents TB, related deaths” published in The Hindu on 9th August 2023.
What is the News?
A trial conducted in India highlights the importance of nutritional supplementation in significantly reducing the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) among household contacts of TB patients and lowering mortality rates in those diagnosed with active pulmonary TB.
What is the importance of nutrition in tuberculosis (TB)?
Undernutrition accounts for more than 40% of new TB cases annually surpassing other risk factors like diabetes, HIV infection, smoking and alcohol.
For example, research by the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (NIRT) demonstrated that TB patients weighing under 35 kg had four times higher mortality than those weighing over 45 kg.
What is the study conducted by researchers to highlight the importance of nutrition in tuberculosis (TB)?
The study was conducted on two groups: household contacts of TB patients and patients diagnosed with active pulmonary TB.
In a controlled trial with family members of TB patients, providing nutritional support resulted in a 39-48% decrease in TB cases compared to those without support.
The researchers also provided nutritional supplementation to 2,800 individuals undergoing treatment for active pulmonary TB.
– Treatment success rate was nearly 94% among TB patients, with only about 4% deaths during the six-month follow-up.
– Early weight gain in the first two months was linked to a 60% lower risk of TB-related mortality.
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