OBJECTIVE:

to describe socio-demographic and clinical characteristics and indicators of tuberculosis (TB) in Brazilian imprisoned population, from 2007 to 2013.

METHODS:

descriptive study with data from the Information System for Notifiable Diseases (Sinan).

RESULTS:

from 2007 to 2013, 38,083 TB cases were reported in the imprisoned population, equivalent to a TB prevalence of 1,236 cases/100,000 individuals; this prevalence was higher among women (1,693/100,000), indigenous people (2,874/100,000), and in the age group >60 years (4,093/100,000); there were mainly reports of cases of pulmonary TB (91.5%) and new cases (78.1%); the TB incidence rate in 2013 (904.9/100,000) was higher than 2007 (627.6/100,000), whilst the mortality rate in 2013 (16.0/100,000) was lower than 2007 (18.0/100,000).

CONCLUSION:

TB in the imprisoned population presents some specific characteristics and higher occurrence than in the general population; the highest prevalence in women and the highest incidence at the end of the study period stood out.

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