| Conhecimento sobre tuberculose, estigma social e a busca pelos cuidados em saúde

Introduction: In the twenty-first century, tuberculosis (TB) remains misrepresented and stigmatized, which may affect healthcare-seeking behaviour. Objective: To assess the impact of the misrepresentation of TB and the strong stigma attached to this condition healthcare-seeking behavior of patients and families. Methods: This systematic review paper searched studies addressing issues relating TB awareness and social stigma to healthcare-seeking behaviour. Inclusion criteria were as follows: full articles published between 2002 and 2012, and which were freely available either in Portuguese or English. Dissertations, thesis and editorial notes were excluded. Results: 17 met the inclusion criteria: six (35.3%) in Africa, seven (41.2%) in Asia and four (23.5%) in the Americas. A relationship was found between lack of awareness about TB and diagnosis delay. Negative attitudes towards tuberculosis and the presence of social stigma also negatively affected healthcare-seeking behavior, and segregation and isolation patterns were found to be common. Conclusion: Raising awareness about TB and overcoming the stigma of the disease would contribute to change negative healthcare- seeking behaviour and to disease control. Awareness about tuberculosis, social stigma and healthcare- seeking behaviour