Risk factors for prolonged treatment of lymph node tuberculosis.

Lymph node tuberculosis (LNTB) is the most frequent form of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis (TB). Randomised, controlled trials have convincingly demonstrated that 6 months of chemotherapy is sufficient for most drug-susceptible LNTB. We performed a retrospective, multicentric study from 1997 to 2010 to describe factors associated with prolonged anti-tuberculosis treatment in patients with LNTB. Of 126 patients diagnosed with LNTB, 22 (17.5%) were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected. The median treatment duration was 9 months (interquartile range, 6-12). Treatment was significantly longer in patients with HIV (P < 0.01), additional sites of TB (P < 0.01) or weight loss (P = 0.04). Factors independently associated with excessively lengthy treatment were HIV co-infection and the presence of other TB foci.