Infectious Disease · Public Health · 2 h ago
Tuberculosis notification trends diverged between teachers and students in Chengdu
A retrospective analysis of pulmonary tuberculosis notifications in Chengdu, China, compared trends among teachers and students from 2010 to 2024. Student rates fell significantly, while teacher rates declined more slowly and remained higher in 2024.
- Teacher PTB notification rates declined non-significantly.
- Student rates fell sharply from 2021 to 2024.
- In 2024, teacher rates were 2.77 times student rates.
- Trends were not significantly different after excluding 2020–2022.
Researchers retrospectively analyzed annual pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) notification data for teachers, students and the general population in Chengdu, Southwest China, from 2010 to 2024. They used joinpoint regression to estimate changes in rates and compare trends, with a sensitivity analysis excluding 2020–2022, the COVID-19 period.
The general-population notification rate fell from 61.78 to 35.63 per 100,000, a 42.3% decrease. Among teachers, the estimated annual percentage change (APC) was −2.19% (95% CI −5.04% to 0.75%; P=0.130), indicating no statistically significant trend. Student rates declined across three periods, with APCs of −7.11% in 2010–2017, −1.41% in 2017–2021 and −17.32% in 2021–2024. The overall trends differed (P=0.005); in 2024, the teacher rate was 16.00 per 100,000 versus 5.78 among students.
When 2020–2022 was excluded, both groups had declining rates and their trends were not significantly different (P=0.206). The findings are specific to one city and rely on notification data; they do not establish why rates differed or evaluate screening strategies. The authors suggest giving teachers greater attention in school-based TB prevention.
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BMC Public Health: Divergent trends in pulmonary tuberculosis notification rates between teachers and students in Southwest China, 2010–2024: a joinpoint regression analysis ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.