Determinants of treatment success among drug-susceptible tuberculosis patients in Ghana: A prospective cohort study

Background Achieving optimal rates of success in tuberculosis treatment is vital not just for the individual patient’s well-being but also for preventing the rise of drug-resistant tuberculosis strains. Unfavourable treatment outcomes pose significant challenges for healthcare systems worldwide. Identifying the factors that determine treatment success is crucial for implementing effective interventions that enhance treatment outcomes and contribute to the eradication of the disease. As a result, this study aimed to assess tuberculosis treatment outcomes and identify factors associated with treatment success. Methods Patients diagnosed with active tuberculosis were closely monitored from the start of their treatment until its completion from January 2021 to June 2022. A data collection tool, developed using Redcap and aligned with the study objectives, was utilized to gather demographic information, and adverse reactions to antitubercular medicines and track the treatment outcomes of the participants. The participants’ quality of life was assessed using the Short-form 12 version 2 questionnaire at baseline, as well as at the end of the second and sixth months. Logistic regression was employed to evaluate the association between various participant characteristics and treatment success, with odds ratios used to quantify the strength of the associations. Results Among 378 participants, 77.3% had successful TB treatment, while 13.5% were lost to follow-up, 0.5% experienced treatment failure, and 8.7% died. Factors influencing treatment success included initial body weight, weight gain during treatment, HIV status, drug adverse reactions, and mental well-being at the beginning of treatment. Multivariate analysis showed that gaining at least 3kg during treatment and having no risk of depression at the beginning significantly increased the likelihood of successful treatment. Conclusion Patients with tuberculosis who experience compromised physical and mental health-related quality of life, encounter adverse reactions to antitubercular drugs and have concurrent HIV infection should receive close monitoring and personalized interventions to improve their chances of treatment success. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Not Applicable The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: Committee on Human Research, Publications and Ethics of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana and Ghana Health Service Ethics Review Committee I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Not Applicable I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Not Applicable I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable. Not Applicable All data sets associated with this manuscript are available at data.mendeley.com [www.data.mendeley.com][1] [1]: http://www.data.mendeley.com