Epidemiology of tuberculosis in Bahrain : analysis of surveillance data, 2000-2006

Abstract EN

BACKGROUND : In 1996 Bahrain and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) formulated a tuberculosis elimination initiative.

The objective of this initiative was to decrease the incidence of smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis to 1 per 100,000 by 2010.

OBJECTIVE : To describe the trend of tuberculosis incidence rates and the characteristics of tuberculosis cases in Bahrain.

METHODS : A retrospective descriptive study of surveillance data of all TB cases diagnosed in Bahrain between January 2000 and December 2006, collected from Salmaniya Medical Complex, Ministry of Health, and medical records.

Additional sources were accessed for tuberculosis records.

Data were entered, validated and analyzed using SPSS-16 statistical package.

Frequencies and cross tabulations were generated.

Categorical variables were tested using the Chi Square test.

RESULTS : Over the seven-year study period, 1,584 tuberculosis cases were diagnosed in Bahrain.

There was a slight rise in the overall incidence of tuberculosis among both Bahrainis and non-Bahrainis with little or no downward trend; however, this remained low among Bahrainis, ranging from 12.5 to 16.8 per 100,000 per year.

The incidence was higher among non-Bahrainis ranging from 47.4 to 75 per 100,000.

Asians were the commonest non-Bahraini nationality with tuberculosis.

The incidence of pulmonary tuberculosis was higher than extra-pulmonary tuberculosis in both Bahrainis and non-Bahrainis with male predominance in both groups.

Among Bahrainis, the most affected were those over 65 years of age.

CONCLUSION : Despite the rising incidence of TB in Bahrain, migrant workers were the major contributors to this increase.

TB incidence among Bahrainis was low.