Gateway to the diagnosis of tuberculosis among elders in Brazilian municipalities.

OBJECTIVE to analyze the factors associated with the gateway of the health systems of Brazilian municipalities for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in older people. METHOD survey study type, with a sample of 91 elders, in a population with 706 cases of tuberculosis. Data were collected by means of an instrument based on the Primary Care Assessment Tool (PCAT) adapted for tuberculosis care, emphasizing the gateway variable. Variables were categorized and compared between primary health care (PHC) and specialized care (SC) services. Bivariate analysis and the Chi-square association test were used. RESULTS a statistically significant association (p = 0.0001) was found between the fi rst health service sought and the unit that diagnosed tuberculosis, showing better performance of specialized care services in the diagnosis. CONCLUSION it is necessary to improve primary health care services to tackle delayed diagnosis of tuberculosis in older people.