Table 3.
Subgroup analysis of TB incidence and prevalence among SLE patients.
| Subgroups | N | Effect size [95% CI] | I2 | P-value of between-subgroup heterogeneity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Incidence (per 100 person-years) | ||||
| Region | <0.01 | |||
| Asia | 6 | 1.18(0.88,1.59) | 81.4% | |
| Europe | 2 | 0.35(0.10,1.17) | 56.7% | |
| Africa | 1 | 4.40(3.62,5.34) | – | |
| TB burden | 0.03 | |||
| High | 6 | 1.60(0.89,2.86) | 96.6% | |
| Not high | 3 | 0.50(0.22,1.17) | 61.6% | |
| Diagnostic criteria of SLE | 0.79 | |||
| ACR-1982 | 3 | 1.12(0.84,1.51) | 66.0% | |
| ACR-1997 | 5 | 1.27(0.54,2.98) | 96.9% | |
| Study period | 0.91 | |||
| Before 2001 | 3 | 1.03(0.60,1.75) | 65.7% | |
| 2001-2010 | 4 | 1.28(0.55,3.02) | 97.5% | |
| 2011-2020 | 2 | 1.15(0.43,3.06) | 85.8% | |
| Prevalence | ||||
| Region | <0.01 | |||
| Asia | 21 | 4.27%(2.97%,6.14%) | 96.6% | |
| Europe | 1 | 1.65%(0.96%,2.82%) | – | |
| North America | 3 | 1.50%(1.14%,1.98%) | 54% | |
| South America | 1 | 1.56%(1.01%,2.41%) | – | |
| TB burden | 0.22 | |||
| High | 18 | 4.05%(2.70%,6.07%) | 97.1% | |
| Not high | 8 | 2.71%(1.65%,4.46%) | 92.6% | |
| Sample size | <0.01 | |||
| <1000 | 16 | 5.61%(4.17%,7.55%) | 89.7% | |
| ≥1000 | 10 | 1.87%(1.32%,2.65%) | 94.5% | |
| Mean daily dose of GCs | 0.04 | |||
| <20 | 4 | 1.48%(1.27%,1.72%) | 34.7% | |
| ≥20 | 6 | 3.06%(1.54%,6.06%) | 95.1% | |
| Diagnostic criteria of SLE | 0.63 | |||
| ACR-1982 | 10 | 3.42%(2.04%,5.73%) | 96.4% | |
| ACR-1997 | 8 | 4.18%(2.25%,7.76%) | 96.9% | |
| Study period | <0.01 | |||
| Before 2001 | 4 | 9.31%(6.25%,13.86%) | 75.4% | |
| 2001-2010 | 11 | 2.81%(1.88%,4.19%) | 92.8% | |
| 2011-2020 | 11 | 3.28%(1.88%,5.72%) | 97.8% | |
TB, tuberculosis; SLE, systemic lupus erythematosus; N, number; CI, confidence intervals; GCs, glucocorticoids; ACR, American College of Rheumatology.