Smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis and its risk factors among tuberculosis suspect in South East Ethiopia; a hospital based cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis remains a deadly infectious disease, affecting millions of people worldwide. Ethiopia ranks seventh among the twenty two high tuberculosis burden countries. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis and its associated risk factors in Goba and Robe hospitals of Bale zone. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on tuberculosis suspected patients from February-May 2012. Sputum samples were examined for acid fast bacilli using Ziehl-Neelsen staining and interview was conducted for each patient. Descriptive statistics, binary logistic and multivariable logistic regression analyses were employed to identify factors associated with pulmonary tuberculosis infection. RESULT: The prevalence of smear positive tuberculosis was 9.2%. Age >36 (AOR = 3.54, 95% CI = 1. 3–9.82), marital status (AOR = 8.40, 95% CI = 3.02-23.20), family size (AOR = 4. 10, 95% CI = 1.60-10.80), contact with active tuberculosis patient (AOR = 5. 90; 95% CI = 2. 30–15.30), smoking cigarette regularly (AOR = 3. 90; 95% CI = 1. 20–12.40), and human immunodeficiency virus sero-status (AOR = 11. 70; 95% CI = 4. 30–31.70) were significantly associated with smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis was high in the study area. Age, marital status, family size, history of contact with active tuberculosis patient, smoking cigarettes, and HIV sero-status were among the risk factors significantly associated with acquiring tuberculosis. Hence, strict pulmonary tuberculosis screening of HIV patients and intensification of health education to avoid risk factors identified are recommended.