High utility of active tuberculosis case finding in an Ethiopian prison
- 1 May 2018
- journal article
- research article
- Published by International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease in The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
- Vol. 22 (5), 524-529
- https://doi.org/10.5588/ijtld.17.0635
Abstract
SETTING: Hawassa Prison, Southern Region of Ethiopia. OBJECTIVE: To determine the burden of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) using active case finding among prisoners. DESIGN: In this cross-sectional study, prisoners were screened for TB using a symptom screen. Those with cough of 2 weeks had spot and morning sputum samples collected for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear microscopy and molecular diagnostic testing (Xpert® MTB/RIF). RESULTS: Among 2068 prisoners, 372 (18%) had a positive cough screen. The median age of these 372 persons was 23 years, 97% were male and 63% were from urban areas. Among those with a positive symptom screen, 8 (2%) were AFB sputum smear-positive and 31 (8%) were Xpert-positive. The point prevalence of pulmonary TB at the prison was 1748 per 100 000 persons. In multivariate analysis, persons with cough >4 weeks were more likely to have TB (OR 3.34, 95%CI 1.54–7.23). CONCLUSION: A high prevalence of TB was detected among inmates at a large Ethiopian prison. Active case finding using a cough symptom screen in combination with Xpert had high utility, and has the potential to interrupt transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in correctional facilities in low- and middle-income, high-burden countries.This publication has 23 references indexed in Scilit:
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