The Impact of COVID-19 Epidemic on Tuberculosis Reports Among Students - Guizhou Province, China, 2020

What is already known about this topic? In 2020, the implementation of non-medical interventions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic has created a negative impact on tuberculosis (TB) control. It is unclear if the prevalence of TB among students in Guizhou Province was also affected. What is added by this report? Among TB cases, the proportion of student TB patients was 19.91% in the back-to-school period in 2020, which was higher than the 13.37% registered in 2017-2019, but this decreased in the COVID-19 pandemic period. The time interval between symptom onset and care-seeking of the student TB patients was the shortest in the back-to-school and physical checkup periods. What are the implications for public health practice? TB active screening was effective for timely detection and diagnosis of TB among students, which could prevent TB outbreaks in schools.