Lipid Profile in Tuberculosis Patients with and without Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Background Understanding whether the preceding low lipid profile leads to active tuberculosis (TB) or active TB leads to low lipid profile is crucial. Methods Lipid profile concentrations were determined from 159 study participants composed of 93 active TB patients [44 HIV coinfected (HIV+TB+) and 49 HIV negative (HIV-TB+)], 41 tuberculin skin test (TST) positive cases [17 HIV coinfected (HIV+TST+) and 24 HIV negative (HIV-TST+)], and 25 healthy controls (HIV-TST-). Cobas Integra 400 Plus was used to determine lipid profiles concentration level. Results The concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in HIV-TB+ patients were significantly lower compared to HIV-TST+ and to HIV-TST- individuals. Similarly, the concentrations of the TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C in HIV+TB+ were significantly lower compared to HIV-TB+ patients. After the 6 months of anti-TB treatment (ATT), the concentration levels of TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C in HIV-TB+ patients were higher compared to the baseline concentration levels, while they were not significantly different compared to that of HIV-TST+ concentration. Conclusion The low concentration of lipid profiles in TB patients may be a consequence of the disease and significantly increased in TB patients after treatment.