Assessing the spatial distribution of tuberculosis in Abuja municipal area council, Abuja, Nigeria from 2019 to 2020

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious respiratory disease caused by a bacteria known as Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It was first discovered on 24th March, 1882 by Dr. Robert Kosh a German physician and microbiologist. Ever then, it has claimed millions of lives both in developed, developing and underdeveloped countries. This project aims to assess the distribution of Tuberculosis infection cases in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) with specific objectives to examine the spatial distribution of tuberculosis (TB) infection cases in AMAC from 2019 to 2020, and to identify the TB most vulnerable group in AMAC. The data used was the register of tuberculosis diagnosed patients and tuberculosis positive patients obtained from Garki Hospital, Abuja, being a test and treatment center in AMAC. The shapefile of the study area was used as support data while the software packages used were Microsoft Excel and ArcGIS 10.3. Statistical analysis, dot density, Average Nearest Neighbour Summary, hotspot, and density mapping were used to examine the incidences and prevalence of TB clusters. Results from the analysis showed that most affected persons are residents of Garki, Kabusa, and Gwarimpa. The choropleth analysis showed that out of the eight districts in AMAC, Garki had 41 has the highest number of infected persons while Orozo had 3 patients. It also revealed that patients between the ages of 31 and 40 are the most infected, with the male gender being the most infected. The study recommended that the government should implement TB tests as part of the basic screening test and should be adopted by schools and offices at all levels and as well, create more awareness.