Tuberculosis
09 Aug 2023 5 mins Download PDF
Tuberculosis
Why in the News?
A large trial involving ~2800 people conducted in India has revealed that nutritional support plays a key role in cutting down tuberculosis (TB) disease rate and mortality reduction in TB infected patients.
TB and Nutritional deficit:
- Severe undernutrition is one of the contributing causes of deaths in TB patients.
- Undernutrition as a risk factor accounts for over 40% of new TB cases every year.
Key highlights of the study:
- Nutritional support led to 39% reduction in all forms TB disease (pulmonary and extra-pulmonary) and 48% reduction in microbiologically confirmed pulmonary TB.
- Early weight gain in the first two months was associated with 60% lower risk of TB mortality.
- Treatment w successful in 94% of TB patients and only 4% of mortality was reported during the trial period.
About:
Tuberculosis:
- An infectious bacterial disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis that commonly affect the lungs.
- Mode of transmission: A communicable disease transmitted from person to person via droplets from the throat and lungs of people with the active respiratory disease.
- Tuberculosis is preventable and curable.
- Those who are infected but not (yet) ill with the disease cannot transmit it.
- TB disease is usually treated with antibiotics and can be fatal without treatment.
- Symptoms: prolonged cough, chest pain, weakness, fatigue, weight loss, fever and night sweats.
Incidence if TB cases globally and in India:
- Global TB Report 2021: The estimated mortality rate among all forms of TB was 37 per 100,000 population in 2020.
- India has the highest burden of TB with two deaths occuring every three minutes from tuberculosis (TB).
- TB is the 13th leading cause of death and the second leading infectious killer after COVID-19 (above HIV and AIDS).
- The Covid-19 pandemic led to setbacks in the fight against TB in decades of gain achieved.
- Of the total number of people who develop TB each year, about 90% are adults, with more cases among men than women
Efforts taken so far:
- National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP)
- Free of cost laboratory services to patients attending public health facilities and those referred from the private sector.
- Special campaign to identify Active Case finding among risk groups: diabetes, chronic kidney and liver disease, patients on immuno-suppressants, etc.,
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- Adoption and adaptation of newer drugs and treatment modalities for TB control.
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- For instance, an injection-free treatment regimen for Drug-sensitive TB has been implemented across the country.
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- Decentralised TB services to the Ayushman Bharat – Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWC) to offer last-mile service delivery to TB patients.
- Access to drugs including newer drugs to patients seeking care in the private sector has been given for free.
- Adoption and adaptation of newer drugs and treatment modalities for TB control.
- National Strategic Plan for Elimination of Tuberculosis (NSP 2017- 25)
- Four critical pillars of NSP 2017-25 includes
- Detect
- Treat
- Prevent – implementation of TB Preventive therapy to all household contacts.
- Build
- Four critical pillars of NSP 2017-25 includes
- 18 States have committed to Ending TB by 2025 by formally implementing
- State-specific Strategic Plans and
- District-specific Strategic Plan
- TB comorbidities handling:
- Malnutrition
- Nutrition-TB App (N-TB App):
- Under Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD).
- facilitates the implementation of the technical aspects of the nutritional assessment and appropriate supplementation
- Nutrition-TB App (N-TB App):
- Tobacco smoking and alcohol
- Support through de-addiction centres
- Social Support systems to people struggling with alcoholism.
- HIV
- Provider Initiated Testing and Counselling (PITC) initiative for early detection of HIV among presumptive TB patients.
- Single-window TB and HIV services implementation
- TB Aarogya Sathi application
- For people with TB with multi-language support
- TB screening tool
- Self-reporting bank account and treatment adherence feature.
Link: Trial done in India shows nutrition support prevents TB, related deaths - The Hindu
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