Pulmonary tuberculosis in patients treated with inhaled beclomethasone |
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Authors: | W. A. Shaikh |
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Affiliation: | Allergy Clinic, Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences, India |
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Abstract: | Inhaled beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) has been used with few side effects in the treatment of bronchial asthma for 2 decades. Until now the manifestation of tuberculosis (TB) in patients on inhaled BDP has not been reported. Eight patients with allergic asthma, of a total of 548 asthmatics (1.46%) seen over a 2-year period, developed active TB following the use of inhaled BDP. All were sputum-positive for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) on smear and/or culture, all responded well to a combination of anti-TB drugs, and none showed evidence of immunological or pituitary-adrenal suppression. Two patients agreed to a repeat administration of BDP; both developed TB again within 2 weeks and are again on anti-TB treatment. |
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Keywords: | allergy asthma beclomethasone dipropionate tuberculosis |
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