Latent tuberculosis and COVID-19 disease

Abstract

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, there has been chaos in the world. With the COVID-19 cases rising, many other medical diseases have been ignored and not prioritized. One of these crucial diseases is Tuberculosis (TB). TB is a highly infectious bacterial respiratory disease. Every year there are millions of cases that are registered all around the world. TB is seen in two forms, an active and a latent form. In both of the states, the individual with TB is immunocompromised. This is of great importance, as COVID-19 is known to readily infect individuals in an immunocompromised state more than those with a healthy immune system. Although a little investigation about coexisting infections with COVID-19 and TB is conducted, it is important to consider many factors that can be beneficial to help treat these patients with both conditions effectively and promptly. A few of these factors are pathophysiological relation, diagnostic measurements, effects of each condition on the other, and approaches to treatment. Through a literature review of available information, we summarized the knowledge regarding the correlation between Latent TB infection and COVID-19 infection. The main objective of this publication is to provide a brief overview of how the two conditions overlap with one another. The article also provides a clinical review of how to approach these two conditions in a scenario where an individual is found to be infected with both Latent TB and COVID-19.