Tuberculosis in international immigrants: Profile and vulnerability of cases residing in the municipality of São Paulo, Brazil.

Objective: To analyze the profile of immigrants with tuberculosis (TB) and to identify the associated vulnerability characteristics.

Methods: A cross-sectional study which used TB-WEB data from cases residing in São Paulo in 2016 (203 immigrants and 6,069 non-immigrants). The variables were analyzed using prevalence ratio and confidence intervals.

Vulnerability factors associated with HIV/AIDS hospitalizations: a case-control study.

Objectives: to identify the association between HIV/AIDS hospitalizations and factors that integrate individual, social, and programmatic vulnerabilities.

Methods: a case-control study conducted in 2014 in a municipality in the state of São Paulo. "Cases" included people living with HIV (PLHIV) hospitalized and "control" those who were outpatients.

Evaluation of pulmonary tuberculosis diagnostic tests in children and adolescents at a pediatric reference center.

Introduction: This study evaluates the performance of individual and combinations tests used for pediatric tuberculosis diagnosis at a reference center.

Materials And Methods: Diagnostic test outcomes from children with presumed pulmonary tuberculosis evaluated from January 2005 - July 2010 were compared to a standard diagnosis made by an expert panel of physicians.

Results: Presence of at least one sign/symptom, history of contact, or abnormal chest X-ray (aCXR) individually showed the highest sensitivity (85.

Association of serum levels of iron, copper, and zinc, and inflammatory markers with bacteriological sputum conversion during tuberculosis treatment.

Iron, copper, and zinc are key micronutrients that play an important role in the immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The present study aimed to evaluate the association between serum levels of those micronutrients, inflammatory markers, and the smear and culture conversion of M. tuberculosis during 60 days of tuberculosis treatment.

[Delay in seeking initial care for tuberculosis diagnosis].

Descriptive study, which aimed to analyze the time between the perception of TB symptoms onset and the first search for health services, according to TB patient characteristics in São José do Rio Preto - SP. 97 TB patients in treatment were interviewed with a structured instrument. The delay was identified by the median time between the perception of TB symptom's onset and the patients demand for care (> 15 days).

Assessing new strategies for TB diagnosis in low- and middle-income countries.

In this manuscript, we report the current situation of tuberculosis globally and in Brazil, the need for new strategies toward tuberculosis control, focusing on new diagnostic technologies. Critical comments are given on the state of the art regarding the evaluation of new health technologies, degree of scientific evidence needed, evaluation of clinical impact, cost-effectiveness of incorporation into the health system and the social impact.

Comparison of two laboratory-developed PCR methods for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis in Brazilian patients with and without HIV infection.

Background: Direct smear examination with Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) staining for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is cheap and easy to use, but its low sensitivity is a major drawback, particularly in HIV seropositive patients. As such, new tools for laboratory diagnosis are urgently needed to improve the case detection rate, especially in regions with a high prevalence of TB and HIV.

Objective: To evaluate the performance of two in house PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction): PCR dot-blot methodology (PCR dot-blot) and PCR agarose gel electrophoresis (PCR-AG) for the diagnosis of Pulmonary Tuberculosis (PTB) in HIV seropositive and HIV seronegative patients.

The active search for respiratory symptomatics for the control of tuberculosis in the Potiguara Indigenous Scenario, Paraiba, Brazil.

This study sought to analyze the actions of an active search for respiratory symptomatics (RSs) in the control of tuberculosis (TB) in the Potiguara Special Indigenous Sanitary District, Paraiba, Brazil, between May and June 2007. After approval by the Research Ethics Committee, 23 professionals were grouped, including physicians, nurses, nurse technicians and indigenous health agents. The focus group technique was used as an instrument for data collection, based on the discourse analysis technique.

[Spatial analysis of tuberculosis/HIV coinfection: its relation with socioeconomic levels in a city in south-eastern Brazil].

Introduction: Spatial analysis of the distribution of tuberculosis/HIV coinfection was performed and associated with socioeconomic indicators in São José do Rio Preto, from 1998 to 2006.

Methods: New TB/HIV coinfection cases were georeferenced and incidence coefficients were calculated for spatial units. Moran's index was used to evaluate spatial associations of incidences.

III Brazilian Thoracic Association Guidelines on tuberculosis.

New scientific articles about tuberculosis (TB) are published daily worldwide. However, it is difficult for health care workers, overloaded with work, to stay abreast of the latest research findings and to discern which information can and should be used in their daily practice on assisting TB patients. The purpose of the III Brazilian Thoracic Association (BTA) Guidelines on TB is to critically review the most recent national and international scientific information on TB, presenting an updated text with the most current and useful tools against TB to health care workers in our country.

Difficulties in the accessibility to health services for tuberculosis diagnoses in Brazilian municipalities.

Objective: To assess difficulties in the accessibility to tuberculosis diagnoses in the health services in Brazil.

Methods: The study was carried out in 2007 and surveyed tuberculosis patients treated in the primary care services in the cities of Ribeirão Preto, São José do Rio Preto, Itaboraí (these three in Southeastern Brazil), Campina Grande and Feira de Santana (these two in Northeastern Brazil). The instrument 'Primary Care Assessment Tool' was used, adapted to assess tuberculosis care in Brazil.

[The performance of health services in providing DOTs in households to control tuberculosis].

Exploratory study of qualitative and quantitative nature that evaluates the performance of the health services in providing DOT in households of a big city in Brazil. For the quantitative analysis, indexes were created to evaluate the optimization of material/human resources and the observation of the medicine ingestion. It was observed that performance of services is influenced by the availability of human/material resources, the internal organization of services and the absence of the ill person in the household.