FAST tuberculosis transmission control strategy speeds the start of tuberculosis treatment at a general hospital in Lima, Peru

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the effect of the FAST (Find cases Actively, Separate safely, Treat effectively) strategy on time to tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment for patients at a general hospital in a tuberculosis-endemic setting. Design: Prospective cohort study with historical controls. Participants: Patients diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis during hospitalization at Hospital Nacional Hipolito Unanue in Lima, Peru. Methods: The FAST strategy was implemented from July 24, 2016, to December 31, 2019. We compared the proportion of patients with drug susceptibility testing and tuberculosis treatment during FAST to the 6-month period prior to FAST. Times to diagnosis and tuberculosis treatment were also compared using Kaplan-Meier plots and Cox regressions. Results: We analyzed 75 patients diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis through FAST. The historical cohort comprised 76 patients. More FAST patients underwent drug susceptibility testing (98.7% vs 57.8%; OR, 53.8; P