Early mortality in tuberculosis patients initially lost to follow up following diagnosis in provincial hospitals and primary health care facilities in Western Cape, South Africa.

ABSTRACT: In South Africa, low tuberculosis (TB) treatment coverage and high TB case fatality remain important challenges. Following TB diagnosis, patients must link with a primary health care (PHC) facility for initiation or continuation of antituberculosis treatment and TB registration. We aimed to evaluate mortality among TB patients who did not link to a TB treatment facility for TB treatment within 30 days of their TB diagnosis, i.e. who were "initial loss to follow-up (ILTFU)" in Cape Town, South Africa. We prospectively included all patients with a routine laboratory or clinical diagnosis of TB made at PHC or hospital level in Khayelitsha and Tygerberg sub-districts in Cape Town, using routine TB data from an integrated provincial health data centre between October 2018 and March 2020. Overal

SUBMITTER: Osman M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8202951 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature