HIV/AIDS: Research and Palliative Care (Dec 2020)
TB and HIV Epidemiology and Collaborative Service: Evidence from Ethiopia, 2011–2015
Abstract
Yalemzewod Assefa Gelaw,1,2 Yibeltal Assefa,2 Ricardo J Soares Magalhaes,3,4 Minilik Demissie,5 Wegayehu Tadele,5 Pandji Wibawa Dhewantara,3,6 Gail Williams2 1Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Science, University of Gondar, Gondar 196, Ethiopia; 2School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4006, Australia; 3UQ Spatial Epidemiology Laboratory, School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, the University of Queensland, Gatton 4343, Queensland, Australia; 4Children’s Health and Environment Program, Child Health Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4101, Queensland, Australia; 5HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis Research Directorate, Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; 6Pangandaran Unit for Health Research and Development, National Institute of Health Research and Development, Ministry of Health of Indonesia, Pangandaran 46396, West Java, IndonesiaCorrespondence: Yalemzewod Assefa GelawSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, 288 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane, Queensland 4006, AustraliaTel +61-469738918Email [email protected]: Integrating and scaling up tuberculosis (TB) and HIV services are essential strategies to achieve the combined goals ending both TB and HIV, especially in TB and HIV high burden countries. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of TB and HIV co-infection and the implementation of collaborative services in Ethiopia.Methods: We used a national sentinel surveillance TB/HIV co-infection collected between 2010 and 2015. The Ethiopian Public Health Institute collected and collated the data quarterly from 79 health facilities in nine regional states and two city administrations.Results: A total of 55,336 people living with HIV/AIDS were screened for active TB between 2011 and 2015. Of these, 7.3% were found co-infected with TB, and 13% TB-negative PLWHA were on isoniazid preventive therapy. Nine out of ten (89.2%) active TB patients were screened for HIV counselling and 17.8% were found to be HIV positive; 78.2% and 53.0% of HIV/TB co-infected patients were receiving cotrimoxazole preventive therapy and antiretroviral treatment, respectively.Conclusion: This study showed that the prevalence of TB and HIV co-infection failed to decrease over the study period, and that, while there was an increasing trend for integration of collaborative services, this was not uniform over time. Aligning and integrating TB and HIV responses are still needed to achieve the target of ending TB and HIV by 2030.Keywords: tuberculosis, TB, HIV, collaborative services, implementations, Ethiopia
