Active Tuberculosis in HIV-Exposed Tanzanian Children up to 2 years of Age: Early-Life Nutrition, Multivitamin Supplementation and Other Potential Risk Factors

Abstract

Background: Over half a million children worldwide develop active tuberculosis (TB) each year. Early-life nutritional exposures have rarely been examined in relation to pediatric TB among HIV-exposed children. We therefore investigated independent associations of early-life nutritional exposures with active TB among HIV-exposed children up to 2 years of age. Methods: Participants were children from a randomized controlled multivitamin supplementation trial conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, from August 2004 to May 2008, who received daily multivitamin supplements or placebo for 24 months. Results: Lower mean corpuscular volumes [relative risks (RR): 0.48, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.27, 0.87] and higher birth weights (RR: 0.61, 95% CI: 0.37, 0.99) were protective against active TB, whereas multivitamin supplementation was not associated with TB risk (RR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.65, 1.16). CONCLUSIONS: Knowledge of nutrition-related risk and protective factors for TB in HIV-exposed children could enhance preventive and case-finding activities in this population, contributing to efforts to reduce the global TB burden.