TB survivors experience higher rates of cardiovascular disease, malignancy, mood disorders, smoking and alcohol use disorder, in addition to the well-documented infectious and immunosuppressive comorbidities placing people at risk of TB.61,65–67 Efforts should be made to address comorbidities as part of comprehensive care during TB therapy, in collaboration with primary care and allied health care providers. After TB treatment, at minimum, people should be linked with a stable primary-care provider to ensure continuity of care and optimal treatment of preexisting co-morbidities. Until further evidence emerges specific to TB populations, it seems prudent to perform age-based health screening according to primary care guidelines in TB survivors.
Good practice statement
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TB programs should ensure that people completing TB therapy are linked to a primary care provider to ensure that co-morbidities are promptly identified and managed as per existing guidelines.
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