SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF TUBERCULOSIS INFECTION IN PLATEAU STATE, NIGERIA: A DESCRIPTIVE ECOLOGICAL STUDY.

Background This study aimed to describe the spatial and temporal patterns of notified TB patients in 2018, 2019, and 2020 in Plateau State. Methods The data were obtained from the State Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme Unit, and the population information was obtained from the National Population Commission. The spatial analysis techniques and time series considered the 17 local government areas as the unit of analysis. The global Moran statistic was used to demonstrate a trend towards clustering over the years of study. Results 7804 TB cases were reported during the three years of the study from 2018 to 2020. The LGAs with high incidences of tuberculosis were Jos North, Jos South, Mangu, and Langtang North. The global Moran statistic demonstrated an increasing trend towards clustering over the years of study. The Local Indicators of Spatial Association (LISA) statistics showed an insignificant relationship between LGAs and their neighbors (z score of -0.035124 and a p-value of 0.886253). Nevertheless, Jos North, Jos South, and Riyom were the LGAs found to have clustered. Conclusion A spatial-temporal pattern that revealed the dynamics of disease spread as the tendency of TB patients to cluster and hot spots of space-time disparities provides useful and detailed information to guide policy formulation to address the burden of TB in the state briefly. Recommendations Spatial analysis techniques should be integrated into routine epidemiological surveillance to monitor tuberculosis risk factors in Nigeria. Government policies should support mapping high-risk areas for infectious diseases among the general population to understand prevalence better and enable precise public health interventions.