TB: Back with a vengeance<\/p>\n
International Tuberculosis Day, which fell on March 24, passed
\nwithout much media coverage in Indonesia, despite the fact that
\ntuberculosis (TB) is the third-deadliest disease in the country,
\nafter cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. This is somewhat
\nsurprising, considering that TB is not a new illness, and
\nmedication is therefore readily available to all.<\/p>\n
The latest report received from the World Health Organization
\n(WHO) is alarming: Every year, Indonesia records more than
\n583,000 new TB cases, which means it is the country with the
\nthird-largest number of TB cases in the world, after densely
\npopulated India and China. Shocking though this may be, the
\ngovernment has yet to do more field research to follow up the WHO
\nfindings.<\/p>\n
According to the Ministry of Health, 83,410 TB cases were
\ndetected in Indonesia in 2000, of which almost 52,500 were
\ncommunicable. In 2001, 97,124 TB cases were detected and more
\nthan 56,700 were communicable, while during the first three
\nquarters of 2002, 107,234 cases were recorded, of which almost
\n62,000 were communicable. Unfortunately, there has yet to be a
\nreliable explanation for this recent, steady increase.<\/p>\n
Given this situation, it is imperative that the government
\nfind out which parts of this archipelagic nation experience the
\nmost TB cases. Also, the ministry should tell the public whether
\nthe patients were mostly men, women, office workers, drivers,
\nfarmers or workers in other jobs liable to infection by TB.<\/p>\n
The answers to these questions are crucial for the government
\nto determine what further moves are necessary to treat patients
\nor to stop the spread of the lethal disease. In the absence of an
\nofficial explanation, several factors arise that may promote the
\nspread of TB, which is linked mainly to poverty and malnutrition.<\/p>\n
It is often argued that in Indonesia, the fourth-most populous
\ncountry in the world, overcrowding in many places is difficult to
\navoid, which creates ideal conditions for the TB bacillus to
\nreplicate. However, a doctor working for the Jakarta-based
\nOrganization for the Eradication of Tuberculosis (PPTI) has said
\nthat TB no longer claims its victims from among rural citizens
\nalone. Smoking and a nocturnal lifestyle are also latent causes
\nof its spread. Among PPTI patients, for example, are a member of
\na band that plays in pubs and women working in a variety of
\nnightspots -- people who are passive smokers virtually all night
\nlong. Increased air pollution in big cities like Jakarta is also
\na dominant factor in the spread of the disease.<\/p>\n
A global program for TB, introduced by WHO in 1994 and known
\nas the Directly Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS), seems not
\nto have been very successful in Indonesia, judging from the
\nincreasing incidence of TB from 2000. Indonesia applied DOTS in
\n1995. The scheme, which aims to help eradicate the disease in
\nmember countries, enables local health officials or relatives to
\nensure that patients take their medication regularly, every day.<\/p>\n
A Jakarta-based doctor, who has entrepreneurs among his
\npatients, said that most TB patients quit taking their pills
\nafter about two months. A complete cure usually takes six months
\nto eight months. Obviously, discipline and lifestyle are key
\nfactors in dealing with TB -- a disease that was almost totally
\neradicated here in the not-so-distant past.<\/p>\n
The conclusion that can be drawn from all this is that
\ncampaigns to eradicate TB are still relevant, despite the fact
\nthat it is an \"old\" disease, the medication for which is readily
\navailable to patients. People should be continuously warned of
\nthe danger of TB and adequate information on how to stop its
\nspread should be made available to the public, especially those
\nliving in slum areas.<\/p>\n
A detailed TB database should be established and a provincial-
\nlevel, integrated information system be made available to the
\npublic so as to encourage those from all levels of society,
\nincluding businesspeople, to participate in the fight against
\nthis potentially deadly disease. In this way, regular BCG
\nimmunizations could be administered to school students and
\nresidents living in areas suspected or proven to be vulnerable to
\nTB, to prevent its spread.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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