TUBERCULOSIS IS STILL A MAJOR KILLER DISEASE IN THE WORLD

 


Needless to say Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of respiratory diseases in human health, and

tuberculosis is one of the deadliest infectious disease killers known to man to date.


WHO estimates that each day, nearly 4000 people lose their lives to TB and close to 28,000 people

fall ill with this preventable and curable disease. This equates to 1.5 million deaths and 10 million people

falling ill to TB each year. Countries in the Africa region (including Ghana) accounted for over half a

million TB deaths and 25% of those who developed TB in 2019.


Even though in recent years, a lot of progress has been made against TB, yet 3 million people with TB

disease are still undiagnosed in different parts of the world. Furthermore, 1 in 3 people with TB do not

access quality care for the following reasons: gaps in research and development; insufficient or

underfunded health services; long and difficult treatments regimens; and stigma, among others.


In addition, a quarter of the world’s population is estimated to be living with the bacteria that causes the

TB disease (i.e. TB infection). It is also estimated that people with TB infection generally have a 5-10

percent chance of developing the disease over their lifetime. However, TB preventive therapy reduces a

person’s risk of developing active TB by 60 to 90 percent.


According to Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, “The effects of COVID-19 go

far beyond the death and disease caused by the virus itself. The disruption to essential services for people

with TB is just one tragic example of the ways the pandemic is disproportionately affecting some of the

world’s poorest people, who were already at higher risk for TB. These sobering data point to the need for

countries to make universal health coverage a key priority as they respond to and recover from the

pandemic, to ensure access to essential services for TB and all diseases.”


Despite all the advances made in TB prevention and care over the years, many people who have TB are

still unable to access the care they need. WHO fears that in 2020, over half a million more people may

have died from TB, simply because they were unable to obtain a diagnosis. In an effort to address this,

WHO recently issued new guidance on World TB Day which aims to help countries identify the specific

needs of communities, the populations at highest risk of TB, and the locations most affected to ensure

people can access the most appropriate prevention and care services. This can be achieved through a

more systematic use of screening approaches that employ novel tools.


It behoves both governments and the public at large, across the globe, to apply and adhere to this new

guidance in order to facilitate access to prevention and care services for TB. In so doing, as the world’s

attention is currently geared towards looking for lasting solutions to end the Covid-19 pandemic, the

momentum for the prevention and care of a disease as preventable and curable as TB will not slacken.


Remember the following facts about TB:

  • People of all age groups are at risk, but TB mostly affects adults in their most productive years.

  • People who are infected with HIV are 18 times more likely to develop active TB.

  • The risk of active TB is also greater in people suffering from other conditions that weaken their immunity like diabetes, undernutrition, etc.

  • People suffering from TB tend to develop more severe Covid-19 disease.

  • Alcohol use disorder and tobacco smoking increase the risk of TB disease by a factor of 3.3 and 1.6, respectively.

  • Common symptoms of active lung TB are: cough with sputum and blood at times, chest pains, weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats. 

  • TB is a treatable and curable disease, so if you have any of the above-mentioned symptoms do not hesitate to report to the nearest health facility for prompt attention and care.

  • The tools for rapidly diagnosing TB, and the effective medicines for treating and curing it are all available in Ghana, so do not suffer silently.




Prepared by:

Dr. Eugene A Nyarko

Founder/CEO

NeoCare Medical Centre

Adenta, Accra, Ghana.


For more information contact:

genenyarko@neocaremedical.com

ekanyarko@outlook.com

Mobile: +233508766566


Location: 3rd Aprotech St, Adenta Municipality, Ghana

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