Hierarchical true prevalence, risk factors and clinical symptoms of tuberculosis among suspects in Bangladesh

Abstract Background The study was aimed to estimate the true prevalence of human tuberculosis (TB); identify risk factors and clinical symptoms of TB; and detect rifampicin (RIF) sensitivity in Bangladesh. Methods The cross-sectional study was conducted in three Bangladesh districts during 2018. Potential risk factors, clinical symptoms, and comorbidities were collected from 684 TB suspects. Sputum specimens were examined by LED microscopy. TB hierarchical true prevalence, risk factors and clinical symptoms were estimated and identified using a Bayesian analysis framework. Rifampicin sensitivity of M. tuberculosis (MTB) was detected by GeneXpert MTB/RIF assay. Results The median TB true prevalence was 14.2% (3.8; 34.5). Although overall clustering of prevalence was not found, several DOTS centers were identified with high prevalence (22.3% to…