A highly infectious lung disease that is responsible for the death of maximum population around the globe is TB (tuberculosis). According to the World Health organization (WHO), this disease is among the top ten reason of human death worldwide. The disease is mostly common in the developing countries and the risk is much higher among the people who have a weak immunity system or is affected with HIV virus or malnutrition.
Tuberculosis though mainly affects the lungs but it may severely hamper the functioning of other organs also like kidney, spine and bone marrow. There are two stages of TB one is latent and the other is active. Many people may be infected with TB but they do not show any such symptoms in the earlier stages, and can stay dormant for years till developing into the active stage. The symptom of active TB is mainly related to severe respiratory complications and oozing blood during cough that can be painful and can last up to three weeks.
In India TB is one of the major public health problems and unfortunately holds the largest number of cases in the world. Most of these cases remain undetected or untreated as most people remain unaware of the symptoms and don’t feel the necessity to visit the doctor. Though Government of India is taking major initiatives to eradicate TB from the country but there is need to broadly improve the quality of care that a TB patient must receive.
Dr. Tandon’s take on tuberculosis:
Dr. Ashish Tandon, a highly competent and compassionate chest physician is the name behind the popularity of Haridaya Superspeciality Centre, a unit of Tandon Chest and Sleep Centre, located in the city of Allahabad. The hospital has kindled a ray of hope for every individual belonging to various social strata by providing a well equipped modern world class infrastructure which facilitates the treatment of severe respiratory complications including tuberculosis and that even at an affordable package. Under the supervision of Dr. Tandon, who holds medical experience of more than over two decades, the expert chest physicians at Haridaya Superspeciality centre treat TB patients with utmost care and compassion. Dr. Ashish Tandon has also been a visiting consultant to many hospitals in Allahabad and is also an acclaimed speaker in many medical conferences in India and abroad.
According to Dr. Tandon, 40% of Indian population is infected with TB bacteria. TB or tuberculosis is a contagious bacterial infection that mainly attacks the lungs. Tuberculosis holds a history of being an epidemic in the pre independence era but with the adoption of the latest medical innovation TB is now a fully curable disease.
Symptoms:
Early detection of the possible symptoms can help in proper diagnosis and treatment of the ailment. One must look out for the following symptoms to measure the probability of the presence of TB bacteria in a person. The possible signs are:
Mycobacterium Tuberculosis bacteria is mainly responsible behind the cause of this disease. The bacteria is transmitted from one person to another through infected droplets in the air which is why Dr. Ashish Tandon suggests common people to use mask in the congested public area and to cover up the nostril zone while sneezing. People with well functioning immune system may not experience TB symptoms but may develop active indications in due course of time.
Detection of Tuberculosis:
TB is a hazardous health problem and is a worldwide pandemic. Early detection of TB bacteria in an ailing patient can help in averting the life threatening situation. Physicians conduct certain test to diagnose TB. Such as:
The doctor conducts skin test by injecting purified protein derivative (PPD) under the patient’s top layer of skin. The injected area is again examined by the doctor after two to three days. If the patient develop any hard swollen lump in the injected zone the test is likely to be positive.
Blood test is another important diagnosis conducted to identify the TB bacteria.
If the X Ray report of chest area display certain black spots in the lungs then the patient may develop higher chance of having a positive TB report.
Treatment of TB:
DOTS (Direct Observed Treatment Short) course is the most recommended worldwide strategy to combat tuberculosis. The program is implemented under the Revised national tuberculosis control programme (RNTCP) and is one of the most cost effective TB control programme. India has adopted this strategy and is successfully implementing the programme in eradicating TB from the country since 1993.
Much bacterial infection can be cured with antibiotics but TB is quite different. People suffering from tuberculosis require routine medication for a period of six to nine months. The treatment course must be fully completed otherwise there is a high chance of the TB bacteria to be back again that may prove to be more fatal and difficult to treat. Again the presence of HIV and a weak immunity system can hinder the recovery process of the suffering patient.
The most common combination of drugs used by the physicians to treat TB bacteria are ethambutol, pyrazinamide, isoniazid. All these modern anti TB drugs have side effects that particularly affect the functioning of the liver resulting in jaundice and abdominal pain.
Prevention is better than cure:
Dr. Ashish Tandon suggests proper precaution as a primary defense against this contagious and grave disease. Being an airborne disease, the bacteria generally spread from one person to another when an affected person cough or sneezes without covering their mouth and nose. BCG (Bacille Calmette- Guerin) is the ultimate vaccination to prevent tuberculosis; the vaccination is generally given to the children as a part of immunization against the TB bacteria.
Apart from vaccination, some simple and general tips to prevent TB is to have a proper ventilation system at home. TB bacteria can remain active in a room for longer hours without ventilation. Also proper access of UV sun rays in every room is capable of killing the harmful bacteria. According to Dr. Tandon following a healthy lifestyle and intake of nutritious diet will boost the immunity system which will act as a guard wall against TB bacteria.
Conclusion: TB is no doubt a dominant disease in the developing countries as most of the population suffers from malnutrition and lack of proper awareness also doubles the chance of getting infected from the bacteria. So countries like India need to locally manufacture the anti TB drugs so that the ailing patients from any social stature can afford the medications. There is the need of NGOs to come forward and spread awareness so that this chronic ailment can be prevented before it targets the next victim.
