Yu Ming-Chih, Bai Kuan-Jen, Chang Jer-Hwa, Lee Chun-Nin
Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Medical University-Municipal Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
J Formos Med Assoc. 2004 Nov;103(11):817-23.
People living in aboriginal areas of Taiwan are known to be at especially high risk of developing tuberculosis (TB). This study investigated the incidence and mortality of TB in aboriginal areas of Taiwan.
The TB death statistics and notification data from the National TB Register and Department of Health in 1997-2001 were analyzed.
From 1997 to 2001, people living in aboriginal areas bore a disproportionate burden of TB disease in Taiwan, with mortality rates 5.5-6.5 times and incidence rates 3.6-5.2 times higher than those of people living in non-aboriginal areas. Among patients with TB living in aboriginal areas, 381 died, accounting for 5.1% of the 7480 TB deaths in Taiwan. A large proportion of the patients with TB who died were older than 65 years, in both aboriginal (40.2%) and non-aboriginal (78.5%) areas; however, the age of TB patients who died in non-aboriginal areas was significantly older (p < 0.001). TB patients living in the aboriginal areas accounted for 3.6% (2618/71,447) of the total number of reported TB patients in Taiwan, and 32.7% were in the age range from 24-45 years. In contrast, TB patients living in non-aboriginal areas were typically older, with only 20.1% in the 24-45 age range (p < 0.001) and 44.4% older than 65 years (p < 0.001). In terms of incidence and mortality rates, men predominated in both groups; however, this pattern was less prominent in aboriginal areas than in non-aboriginal areas.
The mortality rates and incidence of TB in aboriginal areas are much higher than those in non-aboriginal areas in Taiwan. Concentration of resources and programs to control TB in aboriginal areas may represent the most effective use of resources for fighting TB.
众所周知，居住在台湾原住民地区的人们患结核病（TB）的风险特别高。本研究调查了台湾原住民地区结核病的发病率和死亡率。
分析了1997 - 2001年国家结核病登记处和卫生部的结核病死亡统计数据及通报数据。
1997年至2001年，台湾原住民地区的人们承受着不成比例的结核病负担，死亡率比非原住民地区高5.5 - 6.5倍，发病率高3.6 - 5.2倍。在居住于原住民地区的结核病患者中，有381人死亡，占台湾7480例结核病死亡病例的5.1%。在原住民地区（40.2%）和非原住民地区（78.5%），很大一部分结核病死亡患者年龄超过65岁；然而，非原住民地区结核病死亡患者的年龄明显更大（p < 0.001）。居住在原住民地区的结核病患者占台湾报告的结核病患者总数的3.6%（2618/71447），其中32.7%年龄在24 - 45岁之间。相比之下，居住在非原住民地区的结核病患者通常年龄更大，24 - 45岁年龄组仅占20.1%（p < 0.001），65岁以上的占44.4%（p < 0.001）。就发病率和死亡率而言，两组中男性均占主导；然而，这种模式在原住民地区不如在非原住民地区明显。
台湾原住民地区结核病的死亡率和发病率远高于非原住民地区。集中资源和项目以控制原住民地区的结核病可能是抗击结核病最有效的资源利用方式。
