Progress towards tuberculosis elimination in Cuba
OBJECTIVE: To assess the short-term trends of major indicators of tuberculosis (TB) elimination.
METHODS: A surveillance system has been created on treatment and case finding. Data from the National TB Registry of the Ministry of Public Health were reviewed.
RESULTS: The incidence of TB declined from 1965 to 1991 from 65.0 to 4.7 per 100000 population, then reversed in the period 1992–1994. The implementation of a re-intervention package recovered the increase from 1995 to 1998. From 1999 to 2003, 97.5% of TB suspects identified underwent sputum smear microscopy. The incidence rate declined from 10.0 to 7.2/100000. In 2003 the case detection rate was 92.2%; the overall TB cure rate was 92% and TB human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection was 3%. Two of Cuba's 15 provinces reached incidence rates of <5/100000, eliminating TB as a public health problem.
CONCLUSION: Low incidence, high detection and cure rates, along with low rates of TB-HIV co-infection, are evidence of progress towards the elimination of TB as a public health problem in Cuba, using DOTS in a context of good socio-cultural and technological interaction.
Keywords: Cuba; control; elimination; surveillance; tuberculosis
Document Type: Regular Paper
Affiliations: 1: Surveillance and Research Group on TB, Leprosy and ARI, ‘Pedro Kourí’ Institute of Tropical Medicine, La Lisa, Havana, Cuba 2: National Tuberculosis Control Programme, National Epidemiological Division, Ministry of Public Health, Havana, Cuba
Publication date: April 1, 2007
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