DISCOVERIES REPORTS (ISSN 2393249X), 2021, volume 4
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CITATION: Sekaran S, Jagani RP, Waleed MS, Celi CSV, Marzban S. Latent tuberculosis and COVID-19 disease. Discoveries Reports 2021; 4(3): e26. DOI: 10.15190/drep.2021.11 Submitted: Aug. 13, 2021; Revised: Dec. 23, 2021; Accepted: Dec. 23, 2021; Published: Dec. 31, 2021
Latent tuberculosis and COVID-19 disease
Sruthi Sekaran (1,*), Ravi Pankajbhai Jagani (1), Madeeha Subhan Waleed (1), Claudia Samanta Villa Celi (1), Sima Marzban (2)
(1) Larkin Community Hospital, Miami, FL, USA
(2) Division of Clinical and Translational Research, Larkin Health System, Miami, Florida, USA
* Corresponding author: Dr. Sruthi Sekaran, Division of Clinical and Translational Research, Larkin Health System, 7031 SW 62nd Ave, South Miami, FL 33143, USA; ORCID #: 0000-0002-5673-6864; Phone: +91-9663981190; Email: sruthisekaran@gmail.com
Abstract
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, there has been chaos in the world. With the COVID-19 cases rising, many other medical diseases have been ignored and not prioritized. One of these crucial diseases is Tuberculosis (TB). TB is a highly infectious bacterial respiratory disease. Every year there are millions of cases that are registered all around the world. TB is seen in two forms, an active and a latent form. In both of the states, the individual with TB is immunocompromised. This is of great importance, as COVID-19 is known to readily infect individuals in an immunocompromised state more than those with a healthy immune system. Although a little investigation about coexisting infections with COVID-19 and TB is conducted, it is important to consider many factors that can be beneficial to help treat these patients with both conditions effectively and promptly. A few of these factors are pathophysiological relation, diagnostic measurements, effects of each condition on the other, and approaches to treatment. Through a literature review of available information, we summarized the knowledge regarding the correlation between Latent TB infection and COVID-19 infection. The main objective of this publication is to provide a brief overview of how the two conditions overlap with one another. The article also provides a clinical review of how to approach these two conditions in a scenario where an individual is found to be infected with both Latent TB and COVID-19.
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