Control of tuberculosis by community health workers in Bangladesh.
BACKGROUND
Tuberculosis remains a major public-health problem in Bangladesh, despite national efforts to improve case identification and treatment compliance. In 1984, BRAC (formerly the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), a national, non-governmental organisation, began an experimental tuberculosis-control programme in one thana (subdistrict). Community health workers screened villagers for chronic cough and collected sputum samples for acid-fast bacillus (AFB) microscopy (phase one). Positive patients received 12 months of directly observed therapy. Phase two (1992-94) included another nine thanas and, in phase three (1995), eight more thanas were included. From 1995, the treatment was an 8-month oral regimen.


METHODS
In 1995-96, we analysed all programme data from 1992 to 1995. First we analysed phases two (12-month therapy) and three (8-month therapy) separately for proportion cured, died, treatment, failed, defaulted, migrated, and referred. Second, we did a cross-sectional survey of tuberculosis cases in more than 9000 randomly selected households in two phase-two thanas and one non-programme thana, and analysed the follow-up of all patients treated in the programme thanas.


RESULTS
In the phase-two analysis, 3497 (90%) of 3886 cases identified had accepted 12-month treatment. In phase three, all of 1741 identified cases accepted the 8-month regimen. 2833 (81.0%) and 1496 (85.9%) in phases two and three, respectively, were cured; 336 (9.6%) and 133 (7.6%) died. The relapse rate 2 or more years after treatment was discontinued was higher than the early relapse rate. The drop-out rate was 3.1%. In the cross-sectional survey, the prevalence of tuberculosis in the two programme thanas was half of that in the comparison thana, where only government services were available (0.07 vs 0.15 per 100 [corrected]).


CONCLUSIONS
The BRAC tuberculosis-control programme has successfully achieved high rates of case detection and treatment compliance, with a cure rate of at least 85% and a drop-out rate of 3.1%. The prevalence survey suggested that at least half of all existing cases had been detected by the programme.
Chowdhury
A M
AM
BRAC, Dhaka, Bangladesh. red@amrbrac.bdmail.net
Chowdhury
S
S
Islam
M N
MN
Islam
A
A
Vaughan
J P
JP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001459:Bangladesh / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003150:Community Health Workers; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*
D000995:Antitubercular Agents