RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Pulmonary function outcomes after tuberculosis treatment in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis
JF Archives of Disease in Childhood
JO Arch Dis Child
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
SP archdischild-2023-326151
DO 10.1136/archdischild-2023-326151
A1 Lew, Yao Long
A1 Tan, Angelica Fiona
A1 Yerkovich, Stephanie T.
A1 Yeo, Tsin Wen
A1 Chang, Anne B.
A1 Lowbridge, Christopher P.
YR 2023
UL http://adc.bmj.com/content/early/2023/11/17/archdischild-2023-326151.abstract
AB Background Despite tuberculosis (TB) being a curable disease, current guidelines fail to account for the long-term outcomes of post-tuberculosis lung disease—a cause of global morbidity despite successful completion of effective treatment. Our systematic review aimed to synthesise the available evidence on the lung function outcomes of childhood pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB).Methods PubMed, ISI Web of Science, Cochrane Library and ProQuest databases were searched for English-only studies without time restriction (latest search date 22 March 2023). Inclusion criteria were (1) patients who had TB with pulmonary involvement at age ≤18 years; (2) pulmonary function tests (PFTs) performed on patients after treatment completion; and (3) observational studies, including cohort and cross-sectional studies. We adhered to the recommendations of the Cochrane Collaboration and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.Results From 8040 records, 5 studies were included (involving n=567 children), with spirometry measures from 4 studies included in the meta-analyses. The effect sizes of childhood TB on forced expiratory volume in the first second and forced vital capacity z-scores were estimated to be −1.53 (95% CI −2.65, –0.41; p=0.007) and −1.93 (95% CI −3.35, –0.50; p=0.008), respectively.Discussion The small number of included studies reflects this under-researched area, relative to the global burden of TB. Nevertheless, as childhood PTB impacts future lung function, PFTs (such as spirometry) should be considered a routine test when evaluating the long-term lung health of children beyond their completion of TB treatment.PROSPERO registration number CRD42021250172.All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information.