OBJECTIVES: Tuberculosis (TB) preventive care on latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) management has been advocated as an initiative to reduce the global incidence of TB. Since the health status of patients with LTBI has not been well-understood, this review aims to evaluate the health and well-being of patients with LTBI.

METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed on six electronic databases from database inception until December 31, 2019. Studies assessing health-related quality of life (HRQoL), health utilities and disease burden of patients with LTBI were included. Two investigators independently evaluated and extracted relevant studies. Pooled analysis was performed to estimate the effect of LTBI on HRQoL.

RESULTS: A total of 4,342 studies were screened, of which twelve eligible articles describing eights unique studies were included for review. The HRQoL of patients with LTBI and individuals without TB infection were comparable, and better than TB patients. However, patients with LTBI reported poorer physical and mental health compared to individuals without TB infection (mean difference: -4.16; 95% CI -7.45 to -0.87, p=0.01). Qualitative results from studies suggest the presence of fear, anxiety as well as stigma in patients with LTBI.

CONCLUSIONS: This review highlights the importance of evaluating health and well-being of LTBI patients to identify potential psychological and social barriers despite the absence of clinical symptoms. While the quality of life of LTBI patients were only marginally affected, this could be an evidence to support the implementation of LTBI management to prevent TB reactivation, which results in more severe consequences including impairment in all domains of HRQoL.