Cross-sectional study of nutritional intake among patients undergoing tuberculosis treatment along the Myanmar–Thailand border

OBJECTIVE: This study summarises nutritional intake among patients with tuberculosis (TB) along the Myanmar–Thailand border according to the local diet. SETTING: TB clinic along the Myanmar–Thailand border. PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional surveys of 24-hour food recall were conducted with participants receiving anti-TB treatment. Participants were purposively selected to reflect proportion of age, sex and HIV co-infection based on historical patient records. Out of a total of 28 participants, 20 (71.4%) were men and 5 (17.9%) were co-infected with HIV. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome compared actual recorded intake to recommended intake. Secondary outcomes compared weight gain and body mass index (BMI) from diagnosis to time of survey. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in macronutrient or micronutrient intake by sex or for patients supplementing their rations. Mean treatment length at time of survey was 20.7 weeks (95% CI: 16.5 to 24.8). A significantly higher proportion of women (8/8, 100%) met caloric requirements compared with men (9/20, 45.0%, p=0.010), but few participants met other macronutrient or micronutrient requirements, with no significant differences by sex or for patients supplementing their rations. From diagnosis to the time of the survey, participants averaged significant weight gain of 6.48 kg (95% CI: 3.87 to 9.10) and increased BMI of 2.47 kg/m(2) (95% CI: 1.45 to 3.49; p=0.0001 for both). However, 50% (14/28) still had mild or more severe forms of malnutrition. CONCLUSIONS: This cross-sectional survey of nutritional intake in patients undergoing TB treatment in a sanatorium setting demonstrates the difficulty in sufficiently meeting nutritional demands, even when providing nutritional support.