Clinical, virological and epidemiological characterization of dengue outbreak in Myanmar, 2015.

Hospital-based surveillance was conducted at two widely separated regions in Myanmar during the 2015 dengue epidemic. Acute phase serum samples were collected from 332 clinically diagnosed dengue patients during the peak season of dengue cases. Viremia levels were measured by quantitative real-time PCR and plaque assays using FcγRIIA-expressing and non-FcγRIIA-expressing BHK cells to specifically determine the infectious virus particles. By serology and molecular techniques, 280/332 (84·3%) were confirmed as dengue patients. All four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV) were isolated from among 104 laboratory-confirmed patients including two cases infected with two DENV serotypes. High percentage of primary infection was noted among the severe dengue patients. Patients with primary infection or DENV IgM negative demonstrated significantly higher viral loads but there was no significant difference among the severity groups. Viremia levels among dengue patients were notably high for a long period which was assumed to support the spread of the virus by the mosquito vector during epidemic. Phylogenetic analyses of the envelope gene of the epidemic strains revealed close similarity with the strains previously isolated in Myanmar and neighboring countries. DENV-1 dominated the epidemic in 2015 and the serotype (except DENV-3) and genotype distributions were similar in both study sites.

IPT in people living with HIV in Myanmar: a five-fold decrease in incidence of TB disease and all-cause mortality.

SETTING: Myanmar, a country with a high human immunodeficiency virus-tuberculosis (HIV-TB) burden, where the tuberculin skin test or interferon-gamma release assays are not routinely available for the diagnosis of latent tuberculous infection. OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of isoniazid (INH) preventive therapy (IPT) on the risk of TB disease and mortality among people living with HIV (PLHIV). DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study of routinely collected data on PLHIV enrolled into care between 2009 and 2014. RESULTS: Of 7177 patients (median age 36 years, interquartile range 31-42; 53% male) included in the study, 1278 (18%) patients received IPT. Among patients receiving IPT, 855 (67%) completed 6 or 9 months of INH. Patients who completed IPT had a significantly lower risk of incident TB than those who never received IPT (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.21, 95%CI 0.12-0.34) after controlling for potential confounders. PLHIV who received IPT had a significantly lower risk of death than those who never received IPT (PLHIV who completed IPT, aHR 0.25, 95%CI 0.16-0.37; those who received but did not complete IPT, aHR 0.55, 95%CI 0.37-0.82). CONCLUSION: Among PLHIV in Myanmar, completing a course of IPT significantly reduced the risk of TB disease, and receiving IPT significantly reduced the risk of death.

Rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis patients in Myanmar in 2016: how many are lost on the path to treatment?

SETTING: Regional tuberculosis (TB) centres of the Yangon and Mandalay Regions of Myanmar, which account for 65% of all notified rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) cases countrywide. OBJECTIVE: To determine 1) initial loss to follow-up (LTFU), 2) treatment delay, and 3) factors associated with initial LTFU and treatment delay among RR-TB patients residing in the Yangon and Mandalay regions diagnosed using Xpert® during January-August 2016. DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study. Each diagnosed patient was tracked in the drug-resistant TB treatment registers of the Yangon and Mandalay regional treatment centres for January-December 2016 using patient name, age, sex, township and date of diagnosis. If the diagnosed patient was not found in the treatment register by 31 December 2016, he/she was considered 'initial LTFU'. RESULTS: Of the 1037 RR-TB patients diagnosed, 310 (30%) experienced initial LTFU, which was significantly higher among patients aged 55 years and among those diagnosed in the Mandalay Region. A treatment delay of >1 month was observed in 440 (70%) patients (median delay 41 days). Delay was uniformly high across patient subgroups, and was not associated with any factor. CONCLUSION: Initial LTFU and treatment delays among RR-TB patients were high. Future studies using qualitative research methods are needed to ascertain the reasons for this observation.

Treatment outcome of tuberculosis patients detected using accelerated vs. passive case finding in Myanmar.

SETTING: Several projects involving accelerated or active case finding (ACF) of tuberculosis (TB) cases are being implemented in Myanmar. However, there is a concern that patients detected using ACF have poorer TB treatment outcomes than those detected using passive case finding (PCF). OBJECTIVE: To assess differences in the demographics, clinical profile and treatment outcomes of patients detected using ACF and PCF. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study of TB patients diagnosed and enrolled for treatment during 2014-2016. RESULTS: Of 16 048 patients enrolled, 2226 (16%) were detected using ACF; the treatment success rate (cured and completed) was 88%. A higher proportion of cases detected using ACF were aged 55 years, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) negative and sputum smear-positive pulmonary TB. After adjusting for differences in demographic and clinical characteristics, we found that treatment outcomes in patients detected using ACF and PCF were not significantly different (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 0.89, 95%CI 0.78-1.00). Male sex, age  55 years, patients with a previous history of TB and HIV positivity were independently associated with unsuccessful outcomes. CONCLUSION: ACF detected a significant proportion of TB cases in study townships; treatment outcomes in cases detected using ACF and those detected using PCF were similar. More tailored interventions are needed to improve treatment outcomes in patients at a higher risk of unsuccessful treatment outcomes.