ILOILO City – The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has disrupted tuberculosis (TB) services in Western Visayas. This has serious implications, according to the Department of Health (DOH).
Many TB cases may not have been “notified” or reported.
In fact, the region registered a drop in notified TB cases last year – 23,758 cases or a 29.77 percent drop from 2019’s 33,828 notified cases.
“Sa iban nga diseases, maghambal ka nga nagnubo, kanami sang feeling,” nurse Christine Mosqueda, senior health program officer of DOH-6, told Panay News. But not when it came to TB.
There’s a “bad implication kay damo pa dapat pangitaon or i-reach out naton nga possible missing TB cases,” Mosqueda explained.
TB is a contagious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a bacteria passed on from a person with TB when he or she coughs, sneezes, spits or even talks.
Bacteria are expelled in respiratory droplets and close contact may inhale the bacteria.
At first, the body’s natural defense system will fight the bacteria but once the immune system weakens, the bacteria may attack the lungs and other parts of the body.
Case notification is important so the DOH could reach out and help TB patients. This, in turn, would help reduce the spread of the disease and set the course for its elimination.
In Western Visayas, here is the breakdown of the notified TB cases in 2020:
* Aklan – 1,598
* Antique – 1,757
* Capiz – 2,111
* Iloilo – 5,175
* Iloilo City – 2,070
* Negros Occidental- 8, 217
* Bacolod City – 2,324
* Guimaras – 506
For this year, DOH projected case notifications to reach 35,325.
‘HAMPERED’
Mosqueda said due to limited mobility, only a few people were coming to health facilities to seek consultation.
“Kon may nabatyagan sila nga sintomas sang posible tuberculosis, nahadlok na sila magkadto sa health facilities kay base ma-expose sila sa COVID-19. Also, mabudlay ang transport because of travel restrictions,” she said.
Moreover, DOH interventions against the TB disease were also hampered.
“Wala na makakadto sa aton mga LGUs (local government units) ang aton x-ray mobile vans to conduct free TB consultations,” Mosqueda said.
Likewise, the Rapid TB Diagnostic Laboratories (RTDL) or the laboratories being used to examine the phlegm of a person were temporarily utilized as COVID-19 testing laboratories.
Now the DOH-6 is multiplying its efforts to get TB care back on track. As it marks World TB Day today, DOH makes an urgent plea to local leaders to support the activities to find and treat as many Western Visayans with TB as possible.
Awareness campaigns should also be intensified, Mosqueda said.
ABOUT TUBERCULOSIS
What are the symptoms of TB?
The most common are chronic cough, fever, night sweats, chest pain, weight loss, loss of appetite, coughing up blood, according to the World Health Organization.
TB is curable, Mosqueda stressed, especially if it is detected earlier.
It takes at least six to eight months of medication to completely treat the disease.
Is TB hereditary?
“Indi,” Mosqueda said. “Na-misinterpret nga hereditary because nga nagalatnanay kamo sa isa ka household kon wala sang infection control.”
What can TB patients do to prevent spreading the disease to other people?
DOH spelled out these preventive measures:
* take medicines as directed
* cover mouth when coughing, sneezing or laughing
* isolate from others and avoid close contact with anyone
* air out room often to the outside of the building (if it is not too cold outside)
After the patient takes the medicines for about two or three weeks, he/she might no longer be able to spread TB bacteria to others.
TB AMONG WV TOP 10 ‘KILLERS’
Data from the DOH-6 showed that TB was among the top 10 leading causes of mortality and morbidity in the region.
In the mortality leading cause per 100,000 population (2019), TB ranked 10 with 1,462 cases.
Topping the list ion the region’s mortality- leading causes were pneumonia, followed by hypertensive cardiovascular diseases (HCVD)/heart diseases; cerebro vascular accident (CVA)/diseases of the vascular system; neoplasm/cancer of all forms; injuries of all forms/accident (injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes); diseases of the respiratory system; renal diseases, septicemia, and diabetes mellitus.
In terms of morbidity in all age groups, TB was sixth in the list with 9,172 cases.
Major leading causes of morbidity in all age groups include acute respiratory infection, animal bites, hypertension, urinary tract infection, pneumonia, acute lower respiratory tract infection, bronchitis, skin disease, and influenza.
DOH-6 MARKS WORLD TB DAY
With the theme “Find TB: Get Back on Track,” Mosqueda said the DOH aims to fortify the campaign against TB that was disrupted due to the pandemic.
“May yara kita supposedly target nga by 2022 ma-notify nga 2.5 million nationwide nga TB cases but subong nga may pandemic damo kita nga activities nga na-hamper or na-compromise. So, we need to get back on track,” explained Mosqueda.
The DOH-6 will have an awareness campaign through social media today. They are also enjoining LGUs to help raise awareness by initiating their own campaigns./PN
