Table 1.
Catastrophic costs among people being treated for TB in the Kharitode study* (n = 327)
| Potential risk factor | Catastrophic costs experienced (n = 90) n (%) | No catastrophic costs experienced (n = 237) n (%) | P value† |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex | 0.32 | ||
| Male | 49 (54) | 144 (61) | |
| Female | 41 (46) | 93 (39) | |
| Age, years | 0.20 | ||
| 18–24 | 9 (10) | 28 (12) | |
| 25–34 | 13(14) | 61 (26) | |
| 35–44 | 32 (36) | 70 (30) | |
| 45–59 | 28 (31) | 57 (24) | |
| ≥60 | 8 (9) | 21 (9) | |
| Number of household members | 0.37 | ||
| 1–2 | 24 (27) | 45 (19) | |
| 3–4 | 27 (30) | 75 (32) | |
| 5–6 | 18 (20) | 64 (27) | |
| ≥7 | 21 (23) | 53 (22) | |
| Duration of primary symptom, months | 0.41 | ||
| <2 | 52 (58) | 139 (59) | |
| 2–4 | 20 (22) | 56 (24) | |
| >4 | 15 (17) | 26 (11) | |
| Missing | 3 (3) | 16 (7) | |
| Tobacco smoking, pack-years | 0.12 | ||
| Never smoked | 52 (58) | 135 (57) | |
| <5 | 19 (21) | 54 (23) | |
| 5–< 15 | 10 (11) | 29 (12) | |
| ≥15 | 9 (10) | 10 (4) | |
| Missing | 0 | 9 (4) | |
| HIV status | 0.11 | ||
| Not infected | 36 (40) | 119 (50) | |
| Living with HIV | 54 (60) | 118 (50) | |
| Travel time to clinic, min | 0.10 | ||
| <15 | 15 (17) | 44 (19) | |
| 15–60 | 46 (51) | 149 (63) | |
| >60–89 | 17 (19) | 25 (11) | |
| ≥90 | 11 (12) | 16 (7) | |
| Missing | 1 (1) | 3 (1) | |
| Employment | 0.45 | ||
| Temporary/informal | 4 (4) | 15 (6) | |
| Unemployed, cannot work | 9 (10) | 33 (14) | |
| Unemployed, could work | 36 (40) | 62 (26) | |
| Retired | 21 (23) | 56 (24) | |
| Student | 6 (7) | 22 (9) | |
| Self-employed | 4 (4) | 10 (4) | |
| Salaried | 10 (11) | 37 (16) | |
| Missing | 0 | 2 (1) | |
| Highest grade attended by any household member | 0.75 | ||
| ≤4th | 18 (20) | 58 (24) | |
| 5–9th | 25 (28) | 56 (24) | |
| 10–12th | 42 (47) | 106 (45) | |
| Any postgraduate | 5 (6) | 17 (7) | |
| SAMPI,‡ SEP | 0.06 | ||
| Lowest SEP | 33 (37) | 76 (32) | |
| Middle SEP | 42 (47) | 92 (39) | |
| Highest SEP | 15 (17) | 69 (29) | |
The catastrophic cost threshold is set after requiring that costs exceed a minimum of 100 South African rand (US$7.70); health care-seeking time is estimated using the median non-grant income of the study population.
Reflects the difference between people who experienced catastrophic costs vs. those who did not, using Fisher’s exact test.
For 26 (8%) participants, the indicator for years of school attended by adults was assumed to be <5 years if the index case and head of household had attended <5 years, regardless of the number of household members. TB = tuberculosis; HIV = human immunodeficiency virus; SAMPI = South Africa Multidimensional Poverty Index; SEP = socio-economic placement.