The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Mahavir Hospital steps up drive against TB

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 23, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Mahavir Hospital steps up drive against TB

Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD: The anti-tuberculosis campaign in the twin cities is entering a crucial phase. While curing and detection percentages have gone up, the number of HIV patients falling prone to TB is on the rise on the other hand.

With World TB Day approaching, on March 24, Mahavir Hospital, the nodal centre for the Revised National TB Control Programme in Hyderabad is planning to step up its efforts. This will mainly revolve around more awareness programmes and strengthening its Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS) centres across the city.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Mahavir's Hyderabad Urban DOTS (HUD) project officer Akbar Yazdani said the current prevalence of TB in the twin cities was around 200 patients per one lakh population, while 83 per one lakh population tested positive every year. In the mean time, while nearly 85 per cent were cured, detection rates, from 30-40 per cent a few years ago, had risen to 70 per cent. However, more private-public partnership was necessary to identify untreated cases, since one such case could infect 10-15 people in one year, given TB's contagious behaviour, she said. Another angle, Dr. Yazdani pointed out was that HIV patients were more vulnerable to TB. And HIV cases are on the rise all over. As of now, around 4,500 private practitioners, 50 diagnostic labs, 10 corporate hospitals, 435 nursing homes, 2,632 clinics and 13 trust hospitals were helping Mahavir Hospital in the HUD project. Several Government establishments too were part of the project. "Increasing access to Government setups, which have all the necessary facilities for TB treatment, was our primary aim. And that has been achieved to a good extent. This tempo has to be sustained if the disease has to be controlled," she said. Increased detection and sustained and regular treatment would be the continuing focus of the programme, she added.

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