Abstract
A small village in Nunavik, Quebec experienced a tuberculosis (TB) outbreak in 2012-2013 and then a resurgence in 2015-2016. Cases were still occurring, despite the fact that contact tracing had already been conducted on one quarter of the population. A decision was taken to conduct large-scale screening of the population for TB. To describe the results of a population-based TB screening intervention designed to identify individuals with latent TB infection (LTBI) or active TB requiring treatment. The history of TB infection (either active TB or LTBI, defined as a positive tuberculin skin test result of at least five mm induration) and treatment (considered adequate if at least 80% of prescribed doses were taken) were determined. Those who were two years of age and older and had not been included in contact tracing after June 1, 2015 were included for TB screening (n=1,026 eligible individuals). Screening included a nurse assessment, tuberculin skin test (TST) for those with previous negative TST or of unknown status and chest X-ray for the others. Of the eligible individuals in the affected village, 1,004 (98%) participated in the screening. Of these, 30% had a history of previous TB infection. A TST screening was administered to 71% of the participants, 10% of whom had positive results. Assessments were performed on 425 participants and 385 underwent a chest X-ray. Fifty-two cases of previously diagnosed active TB and three cases of new active TB were documented. In addition, there were 247 individuals with LTBI who had been previously identified (191 were found to have had adequate LTBI treatment, 56 were found to have had inadequate LTBI treatment) and 69 were identified with de novo LTBI. In addition, 633 participants were found to have no TB infection. There were 125 participants who were referred for LTBI treatment. Follow-up information was available for 120 and 85 (71%) of these completed the treatment. Within this northern village, which had persistent TB transmission despite classic control measures, population-based screening had a high degree of coverage and was an effective way to detect additional cases of individuals with active TB and those with LTBI.
Highlights
The incidence rate of tuberculosis (TB) among the Inuit is almost 300 times that of non-Aboriginals born in Canada [1,2]
A TST screening was administered to 71% of the participants, 10% of whom had positive results
Assessments were performed on 425 participants and 385 underwent a chest X-ray
Summary
The incidence rate of tuberculosis (TB) among the Inuit is almost 300 times that of non-Aboriginals born in Canada [1,2]. Nunavik comprises the northern third of the province of Quebec and is one of the four Inuit regions in northern Canada. Together, these four regions comprise the Nunangat region. The vast majority (99.5%) of the population of the village is of Aboriginal (in this case, Inuit) ancestry, and the population is relatively young (35.5% was 14 years of age or younger in 2016) [4]. In 2012, 55% of Inuit in the Nunangat region who were 25 years of age or older reported food insecurity. A small village in Nunavik, Quebec experienced a tuberculosis (TB) outbreak in 2012–2013 and a resurgence in 2015–2016. Institut national de santé publique du Québec, Laboratoire de santé publique du Québec, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC
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