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Globally people with tuberculosis TB continue to be missed each year. They are either not diagnosed or not reported which indicates possible leakages in the TB care cascade. Zimbabwe is not spared with over missed cases in A preliminary review of TB treatment outcomes indicated patient leakages throughout the presumptive cascade and undesirable treatment outcomes in selected cities. Chegutu District had pre-diagnosis and pretreatment losses to follow-up while Mutare City among others had The problem persists despite training on data analysis and use.
The TB cohorts were analysed to determine the performance of the care cascade and the spatial distribution of treatment outcomes in Zimbabwe. Using data from district health information software version 2. We calculated the percentage of pre-diagnosis, and pre-treatment loss to follow-up LTFU. Univariate analysis of the data was conducted where frequencies were calculated, and data was presented in graphs for the cascade, treatment success, and undesirable outcomes while tables were created for the description of study participants and data quality.
QGIS was used to generate maps showing undesirable treatment outcomes. An analysis of national data found people were presumed to have TB based on symptomatic screening and or x-ray and Of the that got tested, The treatment initiation rate was Analysis of treatment outcomes done at the provincial level showed that Matabeleland South Province had the lowest treatment success rate of Overall, there were high percentages of not-evaluated treatment outcomes.
Pre-diagnosis LTFU was high, and high death and loss to follow-up rates were prevalent in provinces with artisanal and small-scale mining ASM activities. Unevaluated treatment outcomes were also prevalent and data quality remains a challenge within the national TB control program. We recommended strengthening patient follow-up at all levels within the TB care cascade, strengthening capacity-building for data analysis and use, further analysis to determine factors associated with undesirable outcomes and a study on why LTFU remains high.
