Suriname Tuberculosis Control Falls Short as Infection Rates and High Mortality Among HIV Patients Persist
Suriname’s efforts to control tuberculosis are falling short of durably reducing the spread of the disease, with persistent transmission hitting vulnerable populations hardest, according to doctoral research by Eric Commiesie. Commiesie defended his dissertation, Tuberculosis Control in Suriname: An Analysis of Transmission Dynamics, Drug Resistance, and National Control Strategies, on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at the Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname.
Data from the National Tuberculosis Program cited in the study show that Suriname registered 150 tuberculosis cases in 2015 compared with 131 cases in 2025. The estimated number of cases per 100,000 residents decreased slightly over that period from 35 to 34, according to the research. The findings indicate national control measures require further strengthening.
High Mortality Rates Among HIV Patients and Drug Users Drive the Epidemic
Tuberculosis poses a severe risk to individuals living with HIV, as an average of 23% of tuberculosis patients also carried an HIV infection. Average mortality among tuberculosis patients reached 13%, but that figure surged to 23% for patients co-infected with HIV. Furthermore, 43% of patients between 2015 and 2020 reported drug use or alcohol abuse as a risk factor. Drug users appear relatively often in large clusters of patients, pointing to intensive transmission within this group.
Staff Shortages and Funding Gaps Hamper the National Tuberculosis Program
Evaluations of the National Tuberculosis Program reveal that the agency lacks the capacity required to carry out essential disease control activities. The program has suffered from multi-year shortages of personnel and resources needed for the detection, control, and treatment of the disease. Contact tracing among individuals exposed to tuberculosis patients is not being performed sufficiently. Historically, Suriname recorded a tuberculosis mortality rate of 261 per 100,000 residents around 1925, which plummeted to 1.9 per 100,000 between 1976 and 1981, leading to the conclusion that tuberculosis was no longer a priority public health problem before the HIV epidemic drove a resurgence.
Targeted Interventions and International Partnerships Proposed for Elimination by 2035
Commiesie recommends that the government provide structural domestic funding to supply the National Tuberculosis Program with adequate staffing and resources. The researcher calls for active case finding targeted at high-risk groups, including people living with HIV and individuals who use drugs, alongside enhanced contact tracing and preventive treatment where indicated. These domestic measures must align with international partnerships involving organizations such as the Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM) and the Pan-Amerikaanse Gezondheidsorganisatie (PAHO) to meet the World Health Organization End TB Strategy goal of eliminating tuberculosis by 2035.
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