| Summary. Malnutrition is observed frequently in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), but their nutritional
status, especially of micronutrients, is still poorly documented. The objective of this study was to
investigate the nutritional status of patients with TB compared with that of healthy controls in Urmia, Iran.
In a case-control study, 52 patients aged 17–86 y with untreated TB were compared with 58 healthy controls
selected from neighbors of the patients. Anthropometric, clinical, serum biochemical and micronutrient
status data were collected. Compared to controls, TB patients had significantly lower concentrations of
serum albumin, Total iron-binding capacity, ferritin, and calcium (p<0.05). Serum zinc concentrations were
significantly lower in patients than controls (p= 0.04). The average serum levels of copper and zinc in healthy
volunteers were 3.90±2.17 and 17.04±2.85 μg/dL, respectively. In tuberculosis patients, serum copper and
zinc levels were 5.03±2.93 μg/dL and 16.46±3.17 μg/dL, respectively. Patients showed significantly higher serum
copper level than controls (p= 0.01). The serum Cu/Zn ratio was significantly higher in the serum of TB
patients, (0.30 vs 0.23, P=0.05). In conclusion, the nutritional status of patients with TB was poor compared
with healthy subjects. Low level of serum Zn in patients with tuberculosis signifies importance of nutritional
assessments, in particular micronutrients, for better management of TB. |