To disclose the impact of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection on the tuberculosis epidemic in Taiwan, we prospectively screened for HIV infection in patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis. A total of 378 patients who were admitted to the Taiwan Provincial Chronic Disease Control Bureau from January through December 1996 were enrolled. HIV serologic testing was performed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A positive ELISA test was confirmed by Western blot analysis. One patient was infected with HIV. We conclude that the impact of HIV infection on the epidemic of tuberculosis in Taiwan is not significant at present.
PIP: The impact of HIV infection on Taiwan's tuberculosis epidemic was investigated in a prospective study of all 378 pulmonary tuberculosis patients (mean age, 53.5 years) admitted to the Taiwan Provincial Chronic Disease Control Bureau in 1996. Bacteriologic or pathologic evidence of pulmonary tuberculosis was obtained in 306 cases (81%); the remaining 72 patients had chest radiographs and clinical courses consistent with a tuberculosis diagnosis. In the former group, the sputum smear yielded acid-fast bacilli in 279 patients (73.8%) and sputum cultures grew Mycobacterium tuberculosis in 263 (69.6%). Only 1 patient, an overseas Chinese man with a history of encounters with prostitutes, was HIV-positive. His symptoms included cough, weight loss, and malaise of 4 months' duration. His sputum culture was positive for M. tuberculosis and the chest radiograph revealed diffuse non-cavity infiltration lesions over the bilateral lung parenchyma and mediastinum lymphadenopathy. These findings suggest that the impact of HIV infection on Taiwan's tuberculosis epidemic is not significant at present, in part because HIV remains uncommon. However, continued monitoring of dual infection is essential to guide tuberculosis control efforts.