Abstract
According to the estimates of 2015, the global incidence rate for tuberculosis (TB) is 142 per 100,000 population [1]. In Bangladesh, the prevalence rate of TB is 382 per 100,000 population and incidence rate is 225 per 100,000 population [1], [2]. Over the years researchers primarily focused on socio- economic, cultural, and biological factors as the determinants of causation of TB. According to Hargreaves et al. (2011), global socio- economic inequalities, high population mobility, and rapid urbanization influenced key social determinants of TB such as malnutrition, food insecurity, poor environmental conditions, financial, cultural, and geographical factors [3]. These social determinants, in turn, affect the four stages pathogenesis of TB: exposure to infection, progression to disease, diagnosis and treatment, adherence, and success. According to WHO 2016 report, TB epidemic is more severe than it was previously estimated [1]. As developing countries in Asia and Africa are carrying major TB burden [1] and often face difficulties in accessing medical care, social and economic determinants of TB must be appropriately addressed together with the adequate implementation of the TB prevention programs.
