Assessment of Tuberculosis Case Finding and Contact Tracing Practices in Oyo State, South West Nigeria

Tuberculosis remains one of the leading infectious disease killers in Nigeria, and suboptimal case finding and contact tracing are recognised as critical bottlenecks to epidemic control in South West states. This study assesses tuberculosis case finding and contact tracing practices in designated tuberculosis treatment facilities across Oyo State. A cross-sectional design is applied to 42 directly observed therapy short-course facilities and 180 tuberculosis programme officers across six local government areas, selected through stratified purposive sampling. Document reviews of patient registers, case notification forms, and contact investigation records are supplemented by structured interviews with health workers and qualitative discussions with TB survivors. Indicators assessed include case detection rates, sputum smear positivity rates, contact identification completeness, and proportion of contacts investigated and put on preventive therapy. Quantitative data are analysed using SPSS, with qualitative data coded thematically. Nigeria's 2022 National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme annual report indicates that Oyo State achieves approximately 70 percent of its annual TB case notification target, with contact tracing completion below 50 percent. The STOP-TB Strategy's active case finding components form the study's operational framework. Findings will support Oyo State's TB programme in addressing case finding and tracing gaps. Keywords: tuberculosis, case finding, contact tracing, DOTS, Oyo State.