Starting in 1999, the Ministry of Health implemented its Tuberculosis Control Program in the municipality of São Gabriel da Cachoeira, State of Amazonas. With the aim of investigating whether this strategy had promoted changes in tuberculosis incidence among indigenous people in that area, the medical records of 768 patients were studied retrospectively, divided in two groups. Group I consisted of cases treated between 1994 and 1998 and Group II consisted of cases treated between 1999 and 2003. The mean annual incidence rates were, respectively, 239 and 284 cases of all tuberculosis forms per 100,000 inhabitants. The pulmonary form predominated, accounting for 88.2% and 85.9% of the cases, and the cure rate was high (97.2% and 91.5%), respectively in Groups I and II. There was no impact with regard to reducing the incidence rate of this disease, thus showing that a high risk of contracting tuberculosis persists among indigenous people in that area.
Tuberculosis; Epidemiology; Indians; Amazon region
