Tuberculosis: Bacteriological And Epidemiological Aspects in The Central Region of Tunisia

Objective: To present the situation of Tuberculosis (TB) in the region of Sousse. Materials And Methods: A retrospective study conducted during 4 years (2006-2009) concerning all TB cases in the region of Sousse diagnosed according to bacteriological or histo-pathological and / or clinical criteria. Results: The total of TB cases is 494. The incidences noted for the period study were respectively 20.7, 20.6, 24.7 and 22.4. The mean age was 39.7 years, the sex ratio was 1.4. Close contact was found in 29.7%. Twenty patients were prisoners. The mean delay for TB diagnosis was 45 days. Symptoms were predominated by cough and fever in pulmonary TB (PTB). HIV infection was noted in only 2 patients with extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB). TB was 233 times pulmonary and 261 times extra pulmonary (31% lymph nodes). Bacteriology confirmed the diagnosis in 207 cases; microscopy was positive in 67.6% (PTB) and 15.9% (EPTB). Multidrug resistance (MDR) was observed for 8 strains / patients. Mortality attributed directly to TB was 0.2%. Conclusion: TB remains endemic in our region. TB location is primarily lung and lymph nodes. TB is not related to HIV infection. MDR and mortality attributed to TB are rare in our region.