On tuberculosis

Sari Setiogi makes the assertion in The Jakarta Post on March 13 that tuberculosis, or TB, is caused by a nocturnal lifestyle, smoking and sleep deprivation. This belies the facts.

Mycobactrium tuberculosis, the bacteria which usually causes TB, is most commonly spread from person to person by the inhalation of airborne droplets, or aerosols, released into a confined space by the cough of an infected person. This might explain why someone working in a nightclub or aircraft cabin could be at a higher risk of catching the disease.

What was left unsaid in the article is the public health effect of increasing population density and the rate of TB infection. Unfortunately, as Jakarta's population grows and the living conditions of its inhabitants become more crowded, the rate of TB infection is likely to go up, irrespective of the personal or nutritional habits of our hapless citizens.

This is why, rather than poor air quality or pulmonary health, TB is often associated with poverty and overcrowding in many places where it is found.

TB is a serious disease that, if left untreated, can lead to patient morbidity and in some cases, mortality.

Whereas there are antibiotics that can effectively counter the disease, as Dr. Wia Melia rightly states, they do require a long and demanding course of treatment. This unfortunately makes patient compliance, and therefore resolution of the disease, all the more difficult.

DAVID BEINS, Jakarta