ArticleJournal of the International AIDS Society2022
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on TB services at ART programmes in low- and middle-income countries: a multi-cohort survey.
Article in Journal of the International AIDS Society, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- Documenting HIV service delivery and adoption of evidence-based practices in HIV care programs: A protocol for a cross-sectional survey of HIV clinics participating in the International epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA).medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Tracking funding disparities in global health aid with machine learning.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Effect of BMI on Mortality in Patients With Tuberculosis and HIV Coinfection in Asia and Africa: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Asian/Pacific Island nursing journal · 2026Review
- Article
- Policy analysis on drug-resistant tuberculosis in ASEAN member countries using a governance framework approach: a scoping review.BMJ global health · 2025Article
- The Ripple Effect of COVID-19: How Lockdown Regulations Shaped Antiretroviral Therapy Initiation Among People Living With HIV in Johannesburg.Nursing & health sciences · 2025Article
- Infection prevention and control measures during the COVID-19 pandemic and airborne tuberculosis transmission during primary care visits in South Africa.International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases · 2025Article
- Article
- COVID-19 policies and tuberculosis services in private health sectors of India, Indonesia, and Nigeria.Journal of clinical tuberculosis and other mycobacterial diseases · 2025Article
- Impact of the SARS-COV-2 pandemic on access to health services in Angola: a focus on diagnosis and treatment services for tuberculosis.Frontiers in public health · 2025Observational
- Impact of COVID-19 on the neglected tropical diseases: a scoping review.Infectious diseases of poverty · 2024Article
- "I pity the TB patient": a mixed methods study assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on TB services in two major Indonesian cities and distilling lessons for the future.BMJ global health · 2024Article
- Primary Health Care and Tuberculosis Detection during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Crucial Actions for Intensifying Efforts.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
- Article
- The global impact of COVID-19 on tuberculosis: A thematic scoping review, 2020-2023.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
16 authors at 10 institutions in 9 countries.
Funding
Abstract
introductionCOVID-19 stretched healthcare systems to their limits, particularly in settings with a pre-existing high burden of infectious diseases, including HIV and tuberculosis (TB). We studied the impact of COVID-19 on TB services at antiretroviral therapy (ART) clinics in low- and middle-income countries.
methodsWe surveyed ART clinics providing TB services in the International Epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) consortium in Africa and the Asia-Pacific until July 2021 (TB diagnoses until the end of 2021). We collected site-level data using standardized questionnaires.
resultsOf 46 participating ART clinics, 32 (70%) were in Africa and 14 (30%) in the Asia-Pacific; 52% provided tertiary care. Most clinics (85%) reported disrupted routine HIV care services during the pandemic, both in Africa (84%) and the Asia-Pacific (86%). The most frequently reported impacts were on staff (52%) and resource shortages (37%; protective clothing, face masks and disinfectants). Restrictions in TB health services were observed in 12 clinics (26%), mainly reduced access to TB diagnosis and postponed follow-up visits (6/12, 50% each), and restrictions in TB laboratory services (22%). Restrictions of TB services were addressed by dispensing TB drugs for longer periods than usual (7/12, 58%), providing telehealth services (3/12, 25%) and with changes in directly observed therapy (DOT) (e.g. virtual DOT, 3/12). The number of TB diagnoses at participating clinics decreased by 21% in 2020 compared to 2019; the decline was more pronounced in tertiary than primary/secondary clinics (24% vs. 12%) and in sites from the Asia-Pacific compared to Africa (46% vs. 14%). In 2021, TB diagnoses continued to decline in Africa (-8%) but not in the Asia-Pacific (+62%) compared to 2020. During the pandemic, new infection control measures were introduced or intensified at the clinics, including wearing face masks, hand sanitation and patient triage.
conclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic led to staff shortages, reduced access to TB care and delays in follow-up visits for people with TB across IeDEA sites in Africa and the Asia-Pacific. Increased efforts are needed to restore and secure ongoing access to essential TB services in these contexts.
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