Delay in diagnosis among pulmonary tuberculosis patients of Rayagada District, Odisha, India

Publication date: Available online 11 November 2016 Source:International Journal of Mycobacteriology Author(s): Dasarathi Das, Bhagirathi Dwibedi India accounts for more than one-fifth of the world’s tuberculosis (TB) burden. In spite of efforts taken by the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme, tribal areas of the state of Odisha report a high TB incidence over the years. One of the reasons could be delay in reporting to health facilities by the symptomatic patients. During such delays an active case may infect numerous susceptible people thereby contributing to the perpetuation of the infection. The delay in diagnosis may be as long as 2–3months and even more in hard-to-reach areas. The present study aims to find out the extent of delay in diagnosis among pulmonary TB patients of a tribal dominated district that may help in planning effective control strategies for similar situations. The information on delay in diagnosis is part of a cross-sectional drug resistance study carried out from June 2011 to May, 2013 in 20 Designated Microscopy Centres (DMC) of Rayagada district of Odisha, India. Out of 634 smear positive pulmonary TB patients enrolled in this study, information on health seeking by the patients were available for 580 patients. The patients included had clinical signs and symptoms suggestive of pulmonary TB (cough, chest pain, and hemoptysis), with/without radiological evidence. Patients found smear positive by Ziehl–Neelsen microscopy were r...
Source: International Journal of Mycobacteriology - Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research