TABLE 2.
Demographic and clinical data for patients infected with unique isolates and clustered strains with identical mixed-linker PCR DNA fingerprints
| Characteristic | All isolates (n = 263) | Isolates with unique patterns (n = 140) | Isolates in clusters (n = 123) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex (no. of men/no. of women [%]) | 189/74 (70/30) | 98/42 (74/26) | 91/32 (72/28) |
| Age (yr) | 35.9 | 36.39 | 35.45 |
| No. (%) of patients with previous treatment for tuberculosis | 103/262 (40) | 58/139 (42) | 45/123 (37) |
| No. (%) of HIV-seropositive patients | 73/212 (34) | 40/116 (34) | 33/96 (24) |
| Current hometown (no. [%] of patients) | |||
| Windhoek | 214 (82) | 117 (84.8) | 97 (78.9) |
| Ovamboland | 24 (9.2) | 10 (7.2) | 14 (11.4) |
| Other regions | 23 (8.8) | 11 (8.0) | 12 (9.7) |
| Place of birth (no. [%] of patients) | |||
| Windhoek | 50 (26.5) | 25 (26.3) | 25 (26.6) |
| Ovamboland | 76 (40.2) | 33 (34.7) | 43 (45.7) |
| Other regions | 63 (33.3) | 37 (39.0) | 26 (27.7) |
| No. (%) of patient isolates with the following no. of bands per pattern | |||
| 1–5 | 33 (12.5) | 9 (6.4) | 24 (19.5) |
| >5 | 230 (87.5) | 131 (93.6) | 99 (80.5) |