Iranian Journal of

---

Background and objective: Participation of community-based services in the National Tuberculosis Control Programme is (NTCP) necessary to identify and treat all patients with tuberculosis (TB). We developed a novel model to encourage family members and relative to participate in the RNTCP in Darahshar city.
Methods: This community-based intervention was included of two groups of community (relatives of patients and schools). They were trained to identify and refer of patients to allocated health centers. Case finding indices were compared initially and one year intervention. The exponential distribution and logarithmic of incidence were used to compare the incidence of tuberculosis after the intervention with other cities of the province.
Results: The incidence of smear positive cases increased from 5.1/100,000 to 35.2/100,000 (p <001). There was a statistically significant difference between incidence of smear positive cases in Darehshar city and other cities in Ilam province (p <001). During the intervention, 408 suspected patients was identified, it showed about 297 percent increased in case finding (cases in the previous year of the intervention were 137 cases) (p <001).
Conclusion: It seems that community-based intervention could be an effective method to enhance of identify and control of patients with tuberculosis.

---

Background and Objectives: Anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) is restricted to humans; thus, prompt diagnosis and early treatment are significant measures to control the disease. This study was conducted to determine the effect of direct active case- detection and early treatment on the control of ACL in Bam District.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study was performed based on intervention and nonintervention. After the 2003 earthquake, an equipped treatment center was established to actively detect CL cases following the CL epidemic. This intervention was carried out in 2007 and the suspected cases were referred to the center for diagnosis and treatment Another comparable CL treatment center was selected as the control in Kerman. The recorded data of the patients were analyzed with statistical tests at p<0.05.

Results: The incidence rate steadily increased to 30% from 2003 to 2007 whereas the incidence gradually decreased to 1% after the intervention. However, by contrast, the incidence rate increased significantly in the control area. The treatment failure and relapse rate of ACL showed no significant difference with the control group before and after the intervention. The effectiveness of the intervention was calculated to be 85%.

Conclusion: Active case-detection and early treatment of ACL could be an effective measure in controlling ACL, particularly during epidemics. Lessons learned from the 2003 Bam earthquake could be used as a suitable model for ACL endemic areas, nationally and globally.