Eastern Europeans with tuberculosis (TB) and HIV have a much higher death rate than those with both diseases in other regions, Reuters Health reports. Publishing their findings in The Lancet, researchers conducted a prospective cohort study, the TB:HIV study, including 1,406 people with TB and HIV, between 2011 and 2013.

The participants came from 62 HIV and TB clinics in 19 countries, with 834 people from Eastern Europe, 317 from Western Europe, and 255 from Latin America.

The study looked at the proportion of deaths within a year of starting TB treatment: 19 percent (264) of all participants, of which 71 percent (188) were TB-related.

The probability of dying of any cause was 29 percent among the Eastern European group, 4 percent among the Western Europeans and 11 percent among the Latin Americans. The corresponding probabilities of TB-related deaths were a respective 23 percent, 1 percent and 4 percent.

After adjusting the data for various factors, the researchers found that the Eastern Europeans had a four-fold greater likelihood of dying than those in the other two regions.

Within the Eastern European group, beginning fewer than three active TB drugs was associated with a 3.17-fold greater risk of TB-related death, while not having baseline drug-susceptibility tests done was associated with a 2.24-fold increased risk of TB-related death. Having a low CD4 count and having a form of TB called disseminated TB were each associated with a greater risk of TB-related death.

Eighteen percent of the Eastern Europeans were taking HIV treatment when they were diagnosed with TB, compared with 44 percent of the Western Europeans and 39 percent of Latin Americans. A year later the respective proportions were 67 percent, 92 percent and 85 percent.

To read the Reuters Health article, click here.

To read the study abstract, click here.