With a prevalence of 187 TB patients per 100,000 population and a 30% resistance rate, TB is a major public health problem in China. Despite millions of dollars invested, China faces significant challenges in controlling TB, due in part to its large size, high population, and perhaps insufficient political commitment. The quality of life (QoL) of patients with chronic disease affects adherence and treatment outcomes. The objective of the study was to assess the QoL of patients during TB treatment using a 24-question questionnaire that we adapted to TB from the generic WHO SF-36 questionnaire. A partly retrospective, partly prospective study was conducted from March to July 2005 in three tuberculosis wards in three districts in Xishuangbanna, a multi-ethnic tropical region bordering Laos and Myanmar.Six specific domains of quality of life were measured each month and coupled with the clinical evolution.The analysis focused on the evolution of the patients divided into generic and specific QoL scores.

Chen Ying, Máster en Medicina Tropical y Salud Internacional, estudia en Medicina Tropical y Salud Internacional en el Institut de la Francophonie pour la Médecine Tropicale (IFMT) en Vientiane, Laos, y enseña en el Departamento de Epidemiología y Bioestadística de la Escuela de Salud Pública de la Universidad Médica de Kunming, Yunnan, China.