Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Multidrug Resistant Tuberculosis in Malaysia

Abstract

Objective: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis is currently a significant public health concern. This research aims to determine the prevalence of MDR-TB in patients with tuberculosis infection.

Method: Data for this retrospective study were collected from the National TB Information System (TBIS) between 2009 and 2019. A total of 989 cases of MDR-TB have been reported and associated risk characteristics have been determined, such as marital status, gender, ethnicity, employment status, consumption of alcohol, diabetic status and smoking status. A multivariate, descriptive and Pearson's chi-square statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS version 20 software.

Results: The incidence of MDR-TB among patients with TB infections in Malaysia was 0.34%. The findings showed major differences in MDR-TB incidence between male and female patients (0.44% vs 0.20%, p<0.001), single and married patients (1.63% vs 0.24%, p<0.001), race (p<0.001), working and non-working patients (0.48% vs 0.32%, p<0.001), alcoholic and non-alcoholic patients (0.44% vs 0.32%, p<0.001), diabetic patients and non-diabetic patients (0.39% vs 0.27%, p < 0.001), followed by smoking and non-smoking patients (0.13% vs 0.27%, p < 0.001).

Conclusion: This study provides a significant assessment of the prevalence of MDR-TB and related risk factors that could be useful in Malaysia's national TB strategy.

Note:

Funding Information: This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit organizations.

Declaration of Interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.

Ethics Approval Statement: National Institutes of Health and Medical Research Ethics Committee. NMRR-19-1460-46943.

Keywords: Multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis, Prevalence Data, Quality of Life, Risk Factors, TB Surveillance and Urban Health.