Temporal Trend and Prevalence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis among Patients Attending Tuberculosis Centre, ERCC Medical Centre, Alushi, Nigeria

Aims: This study aims to describe the temporal trend and prevalence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTb), among suspected tuberculosis patients attending Tuberculosis Centre, ERCC Medical Centre, Alushi, Nigeria. Study Design: Cross sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: ERCC Medical Centre, Alushi, and Department of Microbiology, Nasarawa State University, Keffi between September 2024 and July 2025. Methodology: A total of 425 sputum samples of patients with suspected Tuberculosis were collected and molecular detection of MTb, drug resistant-MTb (DR-MTb) and multidrug resistant-MTb (MDR-MTb) was carried out using Gene Xpert technique. Results: The temporal trends in the daily cases of MTb declined over the six-month period of study. The overall prevalence of MTb was 122(28.7%) of which 9(2.1%), and 2(0.5%) were DR-MTb and MDR-MTb respectively. The prevalence of MTb in relation to the socio-demographic factors of the patients was found to be the highest among patients with age group; 18-30 years (48.2%) and the male (36.3%). In addition, the prevalence of MTb in relation to the HIV status of the patients was highest among HIV negative (29.0%) patients and lowest among the HIV positive patients (25.0%). Mycobacterium tuberculosis was prevalent in most patients with suspected tuberculosis infection. Also, most of the MTb were drug and multidrug resistance. Finally, the prevalence of MTb was significantly associated with age, gender and occupation but insignificantly associated with the HIV status of the suspected tuberculosis patients. Conclusion: This study concludes that while MTb remains highly prevalent among suspected tuberculosis patients in the studied region, the observed declining temporal trend is an encouraging sign. However, the detection of drug-resistant and multidrug-resistant strains highlights a critical public health concern. The significant association of MTb infection with younger age groups, male gender, and certain occupations underscores the need for targeted interventions. Therefore, continuous surveillance, strengthened diagnostic capabilities using molecular techniques like GeneXpert, and tailored control programs are essential to sustain the declining trend and combat the threat of drug-resistant tuberculosis.