Evaluation of the efficacy of health education on the compliance with antituberculosis chemoprophylaxis in school children. A randomized clinical trial.
Chemoprophylaxis against tuberculosis with isoniazid for 1 year is very useful, but patient compliance is very low. A controlled clinical trial was performed to evaluate the efficacy of three alternative health education strategies and to observe which of them improves compliance with antituberculosis chemoprophylaxis in healthy tuberculin-reactor children. Although all three strategies achieved positive, statistically significant results as compared with the control group, that performed by nursing personnel at the patient's home is the most effective, followed by that performed by the same health professionals by telephone. The least effective strategy by far was that performed by the physician in his surgery.
General Directorate of Public Health, Department of Health and Social Security, Barcelona, Spain.
L
L
Salleras Sanmarti
J
J
Alcaide Megias
M N
MN
Altet Gomez
J
J
Canela Soler
E
E
Navas Alcala
M R
MR
Suñe Puigbo
L
L
Serra Majem
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007538:Isoniazid / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D010349:Patient Compliance; D014374:Tuberculin Test; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000517:prevention & control*
D007538:Isoniazid