Abstract: Diabetes and tuberculosis are two chronic diseases that pose serious risks to human health, and there is a complex interaction between them. Diabetes not only increases the risk of tuberculosis infection, but also aggravates the severity of tuberculosis and the difficulty of treatment. The comorbidity of diabetes and tuberculosis is increasing worldwide and represents a major public health challenge. Although epidemiologic data on latent tuberculosis infection with diabetes are scarce, evidence suggests that the prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection is twice as high with diabetes as in those without diabetes. To effectively control this dual epidemic, timely screening, diagnosis and preventive treatment of patients with diabetes and latent tuberculosis infection are needed. This article reviews recent advances in the epidemiologic characteristics, interactions, diagnostic methods, and prevention strategies of latent tuberculosis infection with diabetes to provide reference and enlightenment for clinical practice and public health intervention.

Key words: Diabetes, Latent tuberculosis infection, Medicine interactions, Preventive therapy