Investigation of suspected pulmonary tuberculosis cases in Katiali in the Dianra Health District, Cote d Ivoire, June 2021

Introduction: On June 10, 2021, the health district of Dianra notified the epidemiological surveillance service of the National Institute of Public Hygiene of four suspected cases of pulmonary tuberculosis residing in the village of Katiali located 7 km from the said district. We conducted an investigation to confirm the disease and to implement control and prevention measures in order to break the chain of transmission.
Method: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study from June 23 to 26, 2021, in the village of Katiali with an estimated population of 719 in 2020. A suspected case was defined as any person in Katiali with a cough lasting more than 14 days, whether or not associated with any of the following signs: fever in the evening or afternoon; sweating at night; intense fatigue; lack of appetite; weight loss or weight loss; cessation of menstruation without pregnancy in women of childbearing age, between 18 March and 10 June 2021. A confirmed case was defined as any suspected case with a positive laboratory result for BAAR by microscopy or Xpert MTB/RIF test.
Results: We recorded 12 suspected cases of which 1 was confirmed with pulmonary tuberculosis, with a positivity rate of 8.3%. The median age of the suspected cases was 7 years with extremes ranging from 3 to 46 years. The male/female sex ratio of the suspected cases was 0.5. The confirmed case was a 7-year-old girl, a second-grade student, in a household of 3 members. 16 contacts of the confirmed case were identified and followed up, of which 6 (37.5%) tested negative by microscopy. The confirmed case was isolated and treated with antituberculosis drugs and the close contacts under 5 years of age were put on isoniazid prophylaxis.
Conclusion: The investigation of suspected cases of katiali tuberculosis identified 12 suspected cases, including 1 confirmed case of pulmonary tuberculosis and 16 contacts of the confirmed case. The isolation of the confirmed case, its management, the prophylaxis of the contacts and their follow-up allowed to limit the spread of tuberculosis in Katiali. We recommend strengthening the technical platform of the general hospital of Dianra for early detection of tuberculosis and sensitizing the community to massively adhere to the extended vaccination program.