Tuberculosis in dialysis patients:

Introduction: Tuberculosis is a major public health problem in developing countries. Its incidence is 12 to 26 times higher in dialysis patients than in the general population. Diagnosis is often difficult because of a non-specific symptomatology and the increased frequency of extra-pulmonary forms leading to a delay in diagnosis and especially in therapeutic management. The aim of our work was to highlight the clinical and therapeutic particularities of tuberculosis in chronic dialysis patients over a nine-year period. Forty-one patients were included in our study. The diagnosis was based on clinical, bacteriological and histological evidence. The evolution of the disease under treatment as well as the adverse effects of the anti-tuberculosis treatment were noted. The manifestations of tuberculosis in dialysis patients are not specific. These atypicalities delay the clinical diagnosis as well as the start of treatment, influencing the evolution and the prognosis.