Time Delay and Associated Factors in Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis in Markazi Province

Delay in the diagnosis of tuberculosis increases the risk of death and enhances the transmission of disease in the community. This study aims to determine the patient and health service delay and factors affecting it in tuberculosis diagnosis. A cross-sectional survey that included all the public health centers was conducted in Markazi province from March 2009 till June 2011. Patients were interviewed after diagnosis by using a structured questionnaire. One hundred and sixty-six patients aged between 9 and 87 (median; 66) years were included in the study. They comprised 87 (52.4%) females and 79 (47.6%) males. The median and mean of patient delay was 35 and 62 days, respectively; the median and mean of health system diagnosis delay was 34 and 53 days, respectively; the median and mean of health system treatment delay was 5 and 6 days, respectively; The median and mean of total delays were 86 and 121 days, respectively for all patients. The main determinants of delay were non education, poor economic, private sector, female gender and age≥55. The results of this review suggest that there is a need for revising case-finding strategies and reduction of infectious cases for better control of tuberculosis.