Prevalence and Predictors of Pulmonary Tuberculosis among Prison Inmates in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Content Provider	Europe PMC
Author	Mera, Habtamu Belew Wagnew, Fasil Akelew, Yibeltal Hibstu, Zigale Berihun, Sileshi Tamir, Workineh Alemu, Simegn Lamore, Yonas Mesganaw, Bewket Adugna, Adane Tsegaye, Tefsa Birlew
Copyright Year	2023
Abstract	Introduction Prisoners in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are at a high risk of tuberculosis (TB) infection due to overcrowding and poor ventilation. Consequently, TB is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in prison, and many inmates face a number of barriers to TB control and had limited information in the region. Thus, the aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to estimate the overall pooled prevalence of pulmonary TB and predictors among prison inmates in SSA. Methods From 2006 to 2019, a systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted using various databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus. The data were extracted in Microsoft Excel using a standardized data extraction format, and the analysis was carried out with STATA version 14. To detect heterogeneity across studies, the I2 and the Cochrane Q test statistics were computed. To determine the overall prevalence of TB and predictors among prison populations, a random effect meta-analysis model was used. Results Of the 3,479 retrieved articles, 37studies comprising 72,844 inmates met the inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of pulmonary TB among prison inmates in SSA was 7.74% (95% CI: 6.46-8.47). In the subgroup analysis, the highest prevalence was found in the Democratic Republic Congo (DRC) (19.72%) followed by Zambia (11.68%) and then Ethiopia (9.22%). TB/HIV coinfection (OR 4.99 (95% CI: 2.60-9.58)), Body mass index (BMI < 18.5) (OR 3.62 (95% CI: 2.65-6.49)), incarceration (OR 4.52 (95% CI: 2.31-5.68)), and previous TB exposure (OR 2.43 (95% CI: 1.61-3.56)) had higher odds of pulmonary TB among inmates. Conclusion The prevalence of pulmonary TB among SSA prison inmates was found to be high as compared to total population. TB/HIV coinfection, BMI, incarceration duration, and TB exposure were all predictors with pulmonary tuberculosis in prison inmates. As a result, emphasizing early screening for prisoners at risk of pulmonary TB is an important point to achieving global TB commitments in resource-limited settings.
Related Links	https://europepmc.org/backend/ptpmcrender.fcgi?accid=PMC10228229&blobtype=pdf
ISSN	2090150X
Journal	Tuberculosis Research and Treatment [Tuberc Res Treat]
Volume Number	2023
DOI	10.1155/2023/6226200
PubMed Central reference number	PMC10228229
PubMed reference number	37260437
e-ISSN	20901518
Language	English
Publisher	Hindawi
Publisher Date	2023-05-22
Access Restriction	Open
Rights License	This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Copyright © 2023 Habtamu Belew Mera et al.
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Infectious Diseases