Research of tuberculosis suggestive signs and respiratory symptoms in a prison of brazil

Tuberculosis is an infectious disease, which mainly affects the lungs caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which can occur in other organs of the human body. Although it is more common in developing countries, it is difficult to eradicate it, being a very common disease in places of confinement like the prison, an environment quite conducive to its development. The present study aimed to investigate the presence of respiratory symptoms related to Tuberculosis in the prison system of Cajazeiras, Paraíba as well as to outline the Socio-demographic profile of prisoners, to identify new cases of TB. An exploratory descriptive study with a quantitative approach was carried out at the Prison of the city of Cajazeiras - PB. For this purpose, data collection was carried out through a structured questionnaire with 97 inmates who are mostly men of average age of 30 years, single, white, with little schooling and coming from low socioeconomic groups. It was noted that the main reason for the arrest was robbery and drug trafficking. The main symptoms identified were cough, fever and dyspnea and weight loss. It was noted that 27.83% had a history of respiratory disease. It was found that although there were several patients symptomatic for tuberculosis all the sputum samples tested were negative.