Age structure of tuberculosis incidence among the female population of Ukraine in 2019-2023

O.V.  Feger; R.Y.  Pohoriliak; L.Y.  Markovtsii; V.V.  Kalii; O.M.  Kozar

doi:10.15574/HW.2025.6(186).59

Authors

O.V. Feger Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7615-9347
R.Y. Pohoriliak Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7388-9969
L.Y. Markovtsii Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9143-0228
V.V. Kalii Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5260-3282
O.M. Kozar Bukovinian State Medical University, Chernivtsi, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1072-4902

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15574/HW.2025.6(186).59

Keywords:

tuberculosis, female population, morbidity, age structure, epidemiology, monitoring, Ukraine

Abstract

Tuberculosis remains a leading infectious disease and a significant medical and social problem for the public health system of Ukraine. It is important to monitor the morbidity among women, because the age structure reflects the epidemic process, socio-economic factors and the effectiveness of anti-tuberculosis measures.

Aim - to analyze the dynamics and age structure of tuberculosis incidence among the female population of Ukraine in 2019-2023.

Materials and methods. A retrospective descriptive epidemiological study was conducted based on official statistical data of the Public Health Center of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine regarding the number of registered cases of tuberculosis among women in Ukraine in 2019-2023. The absolute indicators and their share in the overall structure of morbidity were analyzed. A comparative analysis of the dynamics by years and age groups was carried out with the determination of trends and structural changes. Methods of descriptive statistics, structural and comparative analysis were used.

The results. During 2019-2023, 27,833 cases of tuberculosis among the female population were registered in Ukraine. A decrease in the total number of cases was established from 7,529 in 2019 to 4,744 in 2022 (-36.9%), with a further increase to 5,057 in 2023. The incidence structure was dominated by women aged 35-44 (26.3% of the total number of cases). The age groups 45-54 years and 25-34 years also accounted for a significant share. A trend towards an increase in the specific weight of women aged 65 and older was revealed - from 11.8% in 2019 to 16.7% in 2023.The share of children and adolescents (0-17 years old) remained relatively low (about 6%), but in 2023 there was a certain increase in indicators in the age groups 5-14 years old.

Conclusions. In 2019-2023, Ukraine observed a general decrease in the registered incidence of tuberculosis among women with a minimum level in 2022 and a partial recovery in 2023. A shift in the age structure towards older age groups has been established. The decrease in indicators in 2020-2022 requires careful interpretation, taking into account the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and military events on the completeness of detection and registration of cases.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

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Age structure of tuberculosis incidence among the female population of Ukraine in 2019-2023

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