Gender-based differences in community-wide screening for pulmonary tuberculosis in Karachi, Pakistan: an observational study of 311 732 individuals undergoing screening

Shifa Salman Habib, Syed Mohammad Asad Zaidi, Wafa Zehra Jamal, Kiran Sohail Azeemi, Salman Khan, Saira Khowaja, Abdul Khalique Domki, Aamir Khan, Faiz Ahmad Khan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We describe gender-based differences in a community-wide TB screening programme in Karachi, Pakistan, in which 311 732 individuals were screened in mobile camps using symptom questionnaires and van-mounted digital chest X-ray, between 1 January 2018 and 31 December 2019. Only 22.4% (69 869) of camp attendees were women. Female attendees were less likely to have sputum collected and tested (31.5% (95% CI 30.4% to 32.7%) vs 38.5% (95% CI 37.6% to 39.1%)) or to initiate TB treatment (75.9% (95% CI 68.1% to 82.6%) vs 82.8% (95% CI 78.9% to 86.2%)), when indicated. Among the participants, the age-standardised prevalence of active TB was higher among women (prevalence ratio 1.4, 95% CI 1.1 to 1.7). These findings underscore the importance of integrating gender into the design and monitoring of TB screening programmes to ensure that women and men benefit equally from this important intervention.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)298-299
Number of pages2
JournalThorax
Volume77
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2022
Externally publishedYes

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