[Results of a national tuberculosis survey carried out from 1980 to 1989 in Algeria]. / Résultats de l'enquête tuberculinique nationale realisée de 1980 à 1989 en Algérie.

SETTING: Algeria, where mass BCG vaccination is performed at birth, has a high prevalence of tuberculosis. OBJECTIVE: To measure the scale of the tuberculosis problem and the impact of the National Tuberculosis Control Programme set up in 1972, a tuberculin survey was performed at regular intervals from 1980-1989 in Algeria. DESIGN: The survey took place in the schools of five communities of differing socio-economic levels. During two visits five years apart, respectively 18,960 and 30,738 children aged 8.5 years were tested. During the second visit, 10,301 children aged 12.5 were included in the survey. RESULTS: The prevalence of infection in children with no scar, non-vaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown, was 4.05% in 1980-1984 and 2.71% in 1985-1989. With an annual decrease of 7.8%, the annual risk of tuberculosis infection was 0.34% in 1980-1984 and 0.22% in 1985-1989. CONCLUSION: The results of the survey seem to indicate the continued abatement of the tuberculosis problem in the years to come. They also show that tuberculin surveys at regular intervals can be performed in high-prevalence countries where there is mass BCG vaccination at birth.

[Tuberculosis morbidity between 1982 and 1990 in Algiers]. / La morbidité tuberculeuse de 1982 à 1990 en Algérie.

Information on notified tuberculosis cases collected by the Algerian Ministry of Health and Social Affairs (Ministère de la Santé et des Affaires Sociales Algérien) from 1982-1990 show that 13,916 cases were notified in 1982 and 10,864 in 1990, of which 67%-71% were cases of pulmonary tuberculosis (TP) and 25-29% cases of extrapulmonary tuberculosis (TEP). New cases of smear-positive TP represented 49-55.4% of all cases and the majority of TP (69-79% depending on the year). These forms particularly affected men aged between 20 and 39 and both men and women over the age of 60. The annual incidence of tuberculosis of all forms fell by 40.3% in 9 years, from 72 cases per 100,000 in 1982 to 43 cases in 1990. Similarly, the annual incidence of smear-positive TP fell from 32 per 100,000 to 22 cases (a decline of 37%), and mainly affected the age group 20-39 years. Lymphadenitis remained the most common TEP (a total of 32% in 1990), the fall in incidence of which was similar to that of TP, although slightly less marked. Whilst a firm diagnosis of new TP cases is provided mainly by direct smear examination, TEP are unfortunately rarely confirmed. The HIV pandemic, which has hardly touched Algeria as yet, does not for the moment play a significant role in tuberculosis morbidity in the community.