Delay and completion of tuberculosis treatment: a cross-sectional study in the West Midlands, UK

作者：Sultan Hamira^*; Haroon Shamil; Syed Naveed

来源：JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, 2013, 35(1): 12-20.

DOI：10.1093/pubmed/fds046

• epidemiology
• health promotion
• health services

TB remains a significant problem in the UK with the West Midlands having the highest incidence after London. Treatment is usually for a minimum of 6 months and requires a high level of compliance. We investigated potential determinants of delays and completion of treatment for tuberculosis (TB) in the West Midlands, UK. %26lt;br%26gt;We used data on 4840 patients with TB in the West Midlands from the Enhanced Tuberculosis Surveillance database from 1 January 2005 to 1 October 2010. We used regression models to investigate the cross-sectional association between sociodemographic and clinical risk factors and the timeliness and completion of TB treatment. %26lt;br%26gt;Patients with TB waited 82 days on average from symptom onset to treatment initiation. Female patients spent 6 longer time than males before receiving treatment [95 confidence interval (CI): 1.211.6, P 0.015]. Asian/Asian British patients were 11 times more likely to complete treatment than White patients (adjusted odds ratio: 11.4, 95 CI: 1.31100.3, P 0.028). %26lt;br%26gt;Females in the West Midlands took longer time to receive TB treatment than males, representing a health inequality that could be addressed through gender-sensitive awareness raising programmes. White patients were less likely to complete treatment than Asian/Asian British patients; additional support is needed in this group.

• 出版日期2013-3