Prevalence of Tuberculosis among Inmates of Makurdi and Gboko Prisons, Benue State, Nigeria

Prison inmates are often tagged “the forgotten ones” and are among the populations with high risk for dangerous and contagious diseases. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis among Nigerian Correctional Service, Maximum Security Custodial Center and minimum custodial center in Makurdi and Gboko, Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were administered on these inmates. Samples of 144 inmates within the age ranges of 21years and above 60 years, were screened for pulmonary tuberculosis. Sputum samples were collected among inmates and were investigated for pulmonary tuberculosis by GeneXpert. Of the 144 inmates screened, 134(93.06%) were males and 10(6.94%) were females and the overall prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis obtained from the study was 2.76%. Tuberculosis infection was higher (4.07%) within the age range of 31-40 years. The prevalence of the infection during their months of stay in prison showed that inmates with a short period (6-12) months (4.81%) of stay were infected most with this disease. In relation to gender, males had higher prevalence (5.92%) than females. There was no statistical relationship between the prevalence of Tuberculosis (P>0.05) concerning age groups, occupation and duration of stay among the inmates and there was statistical relationship between the prevalence of Tuberculosis infection (P<0.05) with respect to gender among the inmates. New prison inmates should be screened for TB before admission into the prison and any prisoner with TB should be properly followed up in the prison and after release from prison to ensure complete treatment.