Background: The benefit of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in the treatment of patients coinfected with tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is unclear because of concerns about treatment-related complications.
Methods: We compared outcomes in patients starting TB treatment during the pre-HAART era (before 1996; n=36) with those in patients starting treatment during the HAART era (during or after 1996; n=60).
Results: During a median of 3.6 years of follow-up, 49 patients died or had an AIDS event. Compared with patients in the pre-HAART group, those in the HAART group had a lower risk of death (cumulative at 4 years, 43% vs. 22%; P=.012) and of death or having an AIDS event (69% vs. 43%; P=.023). Event risk within the first 2 months of TB treatment was exceptionally high in patients with CD4(+) cell counts <100 cells/mm(3) and declined thereafter. HAART use during follow-up was associated with a marked reduction in event risk (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.38 [95% confidence interval, 0.16-0.91]).
Conclusions: HAART substantially reduces new AIDS events and death in coinfected patients. Those with a CD4(+) cell count <100 cells/mm(3) have a high event risk during the intensive phase of anti-TB treatment. These data should be taken into account when deciding to delay HAART in coinfected patients with CD4(+) cell counts <100 cells/mm(3).