INTRODUCTION

: Tuberculosis (TB) causes a great burden of disease globally. Its high presence in large cities is explained by these being scenarios of accelerated urbanization, strong social inequalities and concentration of vulnerable circumstances. The objective was to analyze the epidemiological situation of TB in a program area (PA) of the City of Buenos Aires in 2017-2019.

METHODS

: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out. The study population were the reported TB cases living in the PA of Fernández Hospital (FH). The main data source was the National Health Surveillance System.

RESULTS

: A total of 375 cases were recorded. The highest TB notification rate in the PA (29.2) was reported in 2017. The cases were concentrated in Retiro neighborhood, reaching the highest rate in 2018 (134.5). Popular neighborhoods had a rate which was 12 times as high as PA rate (305.1). Of all the cases, 213 were male (56.8%), the median age being 29 years. They were mostly reported by the service network of the FH PA. Regarding the follow-up, 169 cases completed the treatment (45.1%) and 138 did not record any follow-up data (36.8%).

DISCUSSION

: The disaggregated epidemiological analysis revealed the great complexity of the area with respect to this health condition. Interdisciplinary and intersectoral approach networks are key to guarantee accessibility to care and treatment in this population.

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