Long-term mortality of patients with tuberculosis in Korea : a nationwide population-based study

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem worldwide, especially in Korea. However, there are no large population- based studies on long-term mortality of TB patients in Korea. Methods: We used data of the National Health Insurance Service database, which is an extensive health-related database including most Korean residents. TB patients were identified by International Classification of Disease-Tenth Revision coding (A15-19, U88-88.1) and anti-TB drugs during 2003-2016. We analyzed the long-term mortality of TB patients by different variables. Results: A total of 357,211 individuals were diagnosed with TB during 2003-2016, and there were a total of 103,682 deaths in TB patients during the study period. The mortality rate was high at the early phase after diagnosis. The 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, and 5-year mortality rate were 7.2%, 9.3%, 12.2%, and 24.7% respectively. The 5-year mortality rate in males was 27.0% and in females 21.2%. The mortality rate increased rapidly with age and Charlson comorbidity index. Miliary TB had higher mortality than other types. Conclusion: The mortality rate of TB patients was high at the early phase after diagnosis. Higher mortality was observed in males, elderly, and patients with more comorbidities or miliary TB.