Control of tuberculosis by community health workers in Bangladesh

Background Tuberculosis remains a major public-health problem in Bangladesh, despite national efforts to improve case identification and treatment compliance. In 1984, BRAC (formerly the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), a national, non-governmental organisation, began an experimental tuberculosis-control programme in one thana (subdistrict). Community health workers screened villagers for chronic cough and collected sputum samples for acid-fast bacillus (AFB) microscopy (phase one). Positive patients received 12 months of directly observed therapy. Phase two (1992-94) included another nine thanas and, in phase three (1995), eight more thanas were included. From 1995, the treatment was an 8-month oral regimen. Methods In 1995-96, we analysed all programme data from 1992 to 1995. First we analysed phases two (12-month therapy) and three (8-month therapy) separately for…