Survival Patterns of Human Immunodeficieny Virus-Tuberculosis (HIV-TB) Co-Infected Patients in Selected Counties in Kenya

Abstract

One nation with a significant burden of tuberculosis and the human immunodeficiency virus is Kenya. Coinfection with tuberculosis and the human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome complicates infection control and lowers survival rates. While research on HIV/TB coinfection has been done in Kenya, little is known about the patterns in people's survival with Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) and T.B. therapy, particularly regarding the country's many Counties. This study used the Kaplan-Meier function to determine the trends in patient survival for those receiving ART and T.B. treatment in Kenya. A retrospective cohort research design was employed in the investigation. Patients receiving co-therapy for T.B. and ART management who visited the medical institutions between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2019, were included in the target population. The National AIDS & STIs Control Program (NASCOP) database (secondary data) records of all HIV-TB co-infected individuals from the chosen counties in Kenya were used to create the study's sample. The survival function was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier estimator. According to the study, the use of ART and T.B. treatment statistically affects the survival of patients co-infected with HIV and T.B. More persons with T.B. and HIV infections who received both ART and T.B. treatment survived longer than those who received only ART up to about the 750th day. The study also discovered that the mortality rates for HIV-TB patients between 2015 and 2019 differed from county to county. The study also showed that throughout five years, there were variations in the distribution of T.B. and HIV mortality among the 47 Counties. The overall number of T.B. and HIV deaths in the 47 countries was 1077 in 2015. This figure fell to 921 in 2016, 391 in 2017, 106 in 2018, and 60 in 2019. Conclusion: Starting treatment later in the course of the disease may have a bigger impact on lowering T.B./HIV-related mortality than focusing interventions in the first few months following ART initiation.