Question
What are the risks of catching TB if I am HIV positive?
11 March 2008. Related: All topics, Complications and coinfections, Opportunistic infections.
My brother was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis yesterday. He is HIV negative. I am HIV positive since 2002 and I
Answer
Thank you for your question. It is important that you contact your doctor and tell him about this situation. You have already been exposed to tuberclosis and you might already be infected. If you talk to your HIV doctor about the situation you should be able to access some prophylactic treatment.
After the first two weeks of treating pulmonary tuberclosis that a person is usually no longer infectious.
Yes, it would be advisable for you not to share the same living environment, at least for the next two weeks, if you have other choices.
The doctor who is treating your brother should have also asked about his family and living situation, and been much more pro-active at protecting your health.
It is common for all TB guidelines to recommend isolation for people who HIV active infection.
HIV-positive are particularly vulnerable to other infections, and preventing new TB inections in an HIV-positive person is important because the implications of coinfection are far more serious.
BHIVA HIV/TB coinfection guidelines are a good reference for all aspects of TB coinfection.
On isolation:
“All patients with suspected or confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis should be considered potentially infectious until proven otherwise. There should be no intermingling of HIV infected or other immunosuppressed patients with patients who have potentially or infectious tuberculosis”. [114]
Using within a few weeks of treatment, if the treatment is successful, someone is longer infectious.
“It is during the first two weeks of having pulmonary tuberclosis that a person is most infectious. Yes, it would be advisable for you to move out at least for the next two weeks”.
As far as I can recall, this is the first time I have heard this. Could I ask for details of the evidence base for this statement?
Thanks
Chris