ASSESSMENT OF SOME PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES IN GENEXPERT-CONFIRMED PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS PATIENTS ATTENDING SPECIALIST HOSPITAL SOKOTO

Abstract

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major global health challenge, especially in high-burden areas like Nigeria, where it often overlaps with HIV and complicates treatment.My study aimed to evaluate plasma levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in GeneXpert-confirmed pulmonary TB patients at Specialist Hospital Sokoto, and compare them to healthy controls and check its relationship to clinical factors. I conducted a cross-sectional study with 150 participants, including 75 newly diagnosed TB patients aged 18 and older, excluding those with conditions like diabetes, or pregnancy. Blood samples were collected in EDTA tubes, and cytokine levels were measured using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, Student's t-test for comparisons, and Pearson's correlation for associations, all via SPSS version 26, with significance at p < 0.05. Demographically, the TB group was mostly young adults under 30 (66.7%), male (55.3%), single (72.7%), and urban dwellers (78.0%), with low education levels and minimal smoking (17.3%) or HIV co-infection (10.7%). My Results showed elevated cytokine levels in TB patients: IL-6 at 0.62 ± 0.09 pg/mL and TNF-α at 10.32 ± 3.22 pg/mL, significantly higher than controls (IL-6: 0.54 ± 0.04 pg/mL; TNF-α: 7.39 ± 0.97 pg/mL; p < 0.0001). A strong positive correlation existed between IL-6 and TNF-α (r = 0.944, p < 0.001), while both negatively correlated with patient weight (IL-6: r = -0.241, p = 0.003; TNF-α: r = -0.197, p = 0.016), which suggests that inflammation leads to weight loss in TB. My Results highlight how high levels of pro-inflammatory responses shows active TB, potentially serving as biomarkers for diagnosis and monitoring. They show the need for targeted screening in vulnerable groups and integrating nutritional support into TB care to improve outcomes in a resource limited settings like Sokoto. Future research should monitor cytokine changes longitudinally to help with better treatment strategies.