Clinical and immunological markers in Kenyan pulmonary tuberculosis patients with and without HIV-1.

Amongst newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis patients, 44% were co-infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Pulmonary tuberculosis patients with HIV-1 presented more frequently with lymphadenopathy and diarrhoea than those without HIV-1. Peripheral blood CD4+ counts were significantly lower in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis with HIV-1 than those with pulmonary tuberculosis alone, P = 0.0292. CD4+ lymphocyte counts, lymphadenopathy and BCG scar could serve as indicators of HIV-1 infection in pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients.