Epidemiology of tuberculosis in Galicia, Spain, 16 years after the launch of the Galician tuberculosis programme

• Published in: The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease Vol. 18; no. 2; pp. 134 - 140
• Main Authors: Cruz-Ferro, E., Ursúa-Díaz, M. I., Taboada-Rodríguez, J. A., Hervada-Vidal, X., Anibarro, L., Túñez, V., The Galician Tuberculosis Prevention and Control Programme Working Group
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Paris, France International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease 01-02-2014; International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Antitubercular Agents - therapeutic use; Bacterial diseases; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Coinfection; Contact Tracing; Delayed Diagnosis; Emigrants and Immigrants; Evolution; Female; Health Services Research; HIV Infections - epidemiology; Human bacterial diseases; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Incidence; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Infectious diseases; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Mycobacterium; Mycobacterium tuberculosis - isolation & purification; Pneumology; Population Surveillance; Predictive Value of Tests; Program Evaluation; Programme; Radiography, Thoracic; Retrospective Studies; Spain - epidemiology; Sputum - microbiology; Surveillance; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome; Tuberculin Test; Tuberculosis and atypical mycobacterial infections; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary - diagnosis; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary - drug therapy; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary - epidemiology; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary - microbiology; Vulnerable Populations; Young Adult; Europe; Spain; Infection; Tuberculosis; Surveillance; Respiratory disease; Bacteriosis; Evolution; Mycobacterial infection; Epidemiology; programme; Public health
• ISSN: 1027-3719; 1815-7920
• DOI: 10.5588/ijtld.13.0419

SETTING: Galicia, Spain.OBJECTIVE: To describe changes in tuberculosis (TB) epidemiology and characteristics in Galicia, Spain, during the period 1996-2011.DESIGN: Retrospective observational descriptive study of data obtained from the Tuberculosis Information System.
The Galician Tuberculosis Prevention and Control Programme, created in 1994, is based in seven tuberculosis units that actively collect data on case finding and follow-up of all cases of TB in the region.RESULTS: TB incidence fell from 72.9 cases per 100 000 population in 1996 to
24.6 in 2011 (respectively 40.5 and 14.2 in patients aged <15 years). In 2011, 49.8% (n = 343) of patients were aged between 25-54 years; 62.3% (n = 429) were male; 52.1% (n = 359) had pulmonary TB (PTB) alone, of whom 33.5% (n = 144) had cavitary lesions;
50.7% (n = 218 PTB cases) were sputum smear-positive and 80.5% (346 PTB cases) were culture-positive. The median diagnostic delay was 56 days; 4.6% (n = 32) were human immunodeficiency virus positive and 5.2% (n = 36) were immigrants. The treatment success rate was close
to 90%. Contacts of 86.7% of the smear-positive index cases were evaluated.CONCLUSION: TB incidence in Galicia is progressively decreasing; however, it is still higher than that of neighbouring regions. A long diagnostic delay was observed, which may have contributed to the high incidence
rate in children.