Epidemiology of Tuberculosis in the Russian Federation in 2015-2024

The objective: to conduct a comparative analysis of changes in tuberculosis epidemic situation in Russia before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Subjects and Methods. The data from official statistical surveillance for 2015-2024 were studied.

Results. The changes in tuberculosis incidence in Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath are generally consistent with those worldwide. However, in contrast to the global epidemic situation, the pandemic did not impact tuberculosis mortality in Russia. During the pandemic and after it, tuberculosis incidence reduction slowed down or stopped among people aged 45 years and older, which lead to a shift in the incidence structure to older age groups. The following was also noted: an increase in the proportion of patients with fibrous cavernous pulmonary tuberculosis, and a tendency towards a decrease in the proportion of new patients with TB/HIV co-infection. The COVID-19 pandemic and related processes have contributed to stabilization of the frequency of detection of primary multidrug resistance. In the structure of deaths of tuberculosis during the COVID-19 pandemic and after it, the proportion of tuberculosis cases identified post mortem and one-year lethality are increasing. This requires enhancement of tuberculosis detection in social risk groups.

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