Risk of mycobacterial infections in a cohort of silicosis patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases

To evaluate the incidence rates of mycobacterial infections in silicosis patients with systemic autoimmune rheumatic disease (ARD). This was a retrospective cohort of silicosis patients between January of 1999 and December of 2023. We compared the incidence of tuberculosis and nontuberculous mycobacterial disease (NTM) in patients with silicosis with and without ARD. We also compared the tuberculosis incidence in the overall cohort with general Brazilian population estimates. The study comprised 369 silicosis patients, of whom 35 (9.5%) had ARD. Having ARD did not affect the cumulative incidence of mycobacterial diseases. The risk of tuberculosis was higher in the cohort when compared with that in the adult Brazilian male population (age-adjusted incidence rate ratio = 20.46; 95% CI 14.89-28.13). In this cohort of patients with silicosis, ARD was not associated with the incidence of mycobacterial diseases.