Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey
Objectives. To measure delays from onset of symptoms to initiation of treatment in patients with smear-negative and smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis and to identify reasons for these delays. Methods. A total of 136 newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis patients were interviewed using a structu...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2014-01-01
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| Series: | The Scientific World Journal |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/158186 |
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| author | Gulbanu Horzum Ekinci Esra Karakaya Esra Akkutuk Ongel Osman Haciomeroglu Adnan Yilmaz |
| author_facet | Gulbanu Horzum Ekinci Esra Karakaya Esra Akkutuk Ongel Osman Haciomeroglu Adnan Yilmaz |
| author_sort | Gulbanu Horzum Ekinci |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives. To measure delays from onset of symptoms to initiation of treatment in patients with smear-negative and smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis and to identify reasons for these delays. Methods. A total of 136 newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis patients were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Results. The patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 included 65 smear-negative patients. There were 71 smear-positive patients in group 2. The median application interval was 10 days in group 1 and 14 days in group 2. While 24.6% of the patients had patient delay in group 1, patient delay was present in 33.8% of the patients in group 2 (P>0.05). The median health care system interval was 41 days in group 1 and 16 days in group 2 (P<0.0001). The most common reason for patient delay was neglect of symptoms by patient in both groups. A low index of suspicion for tuberculosis by physicians was the most common reason for doctor delays. Conclusions. Delays are common problem in smear-negative and smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients. Delays should be reduced to reach an effective tuberculosis control. Education of public and physicians about tuberculosis is the most important effort to reduce delays. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-818a9c1f183b4a6bb8d8b226fa760285 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2356-6140 1537-744X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2014-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Scientific World Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-818a9c1f183b4a6bb8d8b226fa7602852025-02-03T01:23:30ZengWileyThe Scientific World Journal2356-61401537-744X2014-01-01201410.1155/2014/158186158186Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, TurkeyGulbanu Horzum Ekinci0Esra Karakaya1Esra Akkutuk Ongel2Osman Haciomeroglu3Adnan Yilmaz4Department of Pulmonology, Sureyyapasa Center for Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Investigation Hospital, 34854 Istanbul, TurkeyDepartment of Pulmonology, Sureyyapasa Center for Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Investigation Hospital, 34854 Istanbul, TurkeyDepartment of Pulmonology, Sureyyapasa Center for Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Investigation Hospital, 34854 Istanbul, TurkeyDepartment of Pulmonology, Sureyyapasa Center for Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Investigation Hospital, 34854 Istanbul, TurkeyDepartment of Pulmonology, Sureyyapasa Center for Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Investigation Hospital, 34854 Istanbul, TurkeyObjectives. To measure delays from onset of symptoms to initiation of treatment in patients with smear-negative and smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis and to identify reasons for these delays. Methods. A total of 136 newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis patients were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Results. The patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 included 65 smear-negative patients. There were 71 smear-positive patients in group 2. The median application interval was 10 days in group 1 and 14 days in group 2. While 24.6% of the patients had patient delay in group 1, patient delay was present in 33.8% of the patients in group 2 (P>0.05). The median health care system interval was 41 days in group 1 and 16 days in group 2 (P<0.0001). The most common reason for patient delay was neglect of symptoms by patient in both groups. A low index of suspicion for tuberculosis by physicians was the most common reason for doctor delays. Conclusions. Delays are common problem in smear-negative and smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients. Delays should be reduced to reach an effective tuberculosis control. Education of public and physicians about tuberculosis is the most important effort to reduce delays.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/158186 |
| spellingShingle | Gulbanu Horzum Ekinci Esra Karakaya Esra Akkutuk Ongel Osman Haciomeroglu Adnan Yilmaz Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey The Scientific World Journal |
| title | Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey |
| title_full | Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey |
| title_fullStr | Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey |
| title_short | Patient and Doctor Delays in Smear-Negative and Smear-Positive Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Attending a Referral Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey |
| title_sort | patient and doctor delays in smear negative and smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients attending a referral hospital in istanbul turkey |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/158186 |
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