Epidemiological characteristics of pulmonary tuberculosis among students in Guizhou, China: a retrospective study from 2010 to 2020

OBJECTIVE: We described epidemiological characteristics of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) among students and evaluated susceptible populations and areas in Guizhou province and also to provide scientific suggestions for prevention and control. SETTING: Guizhou, China. DESIGN: This is a retrospective epidemiological study on PTB in students. METHODS: Data are from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention. We collected all PTB cases among the student population from 2010 to 2020 in Guizhou. Incidence, composition ratio and hotspot analysis were used to describe epidemiological and some clinical characteristics. RESULTS: A total of 37 147 new student PTB cases were registered among the population aged 5–30 years during 2010–2020. The proportions of men and women were 53.71% and 46.29%, respectively. Cases aged 15–19 years dominated (63.91%), and the proportion of ethnic groups was increasing during the period. Generally, the raw annual incidence of PTB among the population was increasing from 32.585 per 100 000 persons in 2010 to 48.872 per 100 000 persons in 2020 (c(2)(trend)=1283.230, p<0.001). March and April were the peak months of a year, and cases were clearly grouped in Bijie city. New cases were mainly identified via physical examination, and cases from active screening were still low (0.76%). Additionally, secondary PTB accounted for 93.68%, positive rate of pathogen was only 23.06%, and the recovery rate was 94.60%. CONCLUSIONS: The population aged 15–19 years is the vulnerable population, and Bijie city is the susceptible area. BCG vaccination and promotion for active screening should be the priority of futural PTB prevention and control. Tuberculosis laboratory capacity should be improved.