**Author details**

**AFB smear plus Culture**

404

4,686

The days of admission to the hospital were considered as the same as the

Laboratory Costs

Staff Costs per day

Treatment Costs per day

patients

patients

Labor Costsa 3,743 Investment costs 37 Running costs 3,700

Cost laboratory staff b 1,434 Cost of staff related to the treatment of patientsb 2,791

hospitalized patients 2,771

patients)c 7,456 **Income Loss** 190,000 **Total Patient costs** 190,000 **Total Health Service costs** 9,479,033 **Total Screening costs** 9,668,815

were performed, following the Brazilian recommendations for treatment (Tuberculose 2004);

Running costs were calculated from investments required to examine 1000 smears.

<sup>a</sup> For each procedure, costs were attributed based on procedure costs of the Brazilian Public Health System (US\$ 1,4 for AFB smear and US\$ 1,9 for Culture) and from CDCT/FEPPS (US\$ 11,7 for PCR dot-blot), assuming investment laborato‐ ry equipment for 5 years; bStaff salary was considered; for laboratory technician, US\$2,860 per year; for Laboratory technologist, US\$6,400 per year. Staff costs in the laboratory were based on proportional days spent on each laborato‐ ry procedure; Staff salary was considered for clinical physician, nurse and radiologist; US\$6,400 per year; for the X-RAY

days spent on each laboratory procedure. The time spent on each laboratory procedure until access to the result of the laboratory technique was assumed to be 30 days for AFB smear plus Culture. Total treatment included clinical officer and hospital costs, assuming US\$ 0,22 cost per pill, using 3 pills for day, during 180 days; hospital room costs, US\$ 4,16/day; costs of salary of staff clinical; clinical consultation cost, US\$2,52 per patient; clinical nursing consultation, US \$2,52 per patient. Assuming that during the treatment of inpatients (4 months) 4 ZN and 4 chest radiograph were performed, and during the treatment of no- hospitalized patients (6 months) 6 AFB smear and 6 chest radiograph

d Travel was considered 2 days for AFB smear plus Culture strategy. Food and income loss for AFB smear plus Culture

The health service costs analysis was based on processing 50 AFB smear slides and 14 cultures per day. AFB smear plus

**Table 2.** Total cost of screening for 1000 suspects. The total screening costs to AFB smear plus Culture were US\$

Costs of chest radiograph staff related to the treatment of

436 Tuberculosis - Current Issues in Diagnosis and Management

Costs of diagnostic service related to the treatment of no-

Treatment costs ( hospitalized patients plus no- hospitalized

technician, salary was US\$2,860 per year. c

strategy was considered 30 days

9,668.815.

Culture was performed by two trained staff.

Costs of diagnostic service related to the treatment of hospitalized

Luciene C. Scherer

Lutheran University of Brasil-ULBRA, Canoas/ RS/, Brazil
