At least nine million people worldwide became sick with tuberculosis (TB) in 2013 and 1.5 million of them died, said the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday. Information published by the United Nations (UN) indicates that in the Americas more than 280,000 people contracted TB and 17,000 died in 2013.
According to WHO, TB cases in this continent vary by country, and are generally concentrated among the most vulnerable populations in large cities. The largest numbers of patients are recorded in slums where there are overcrowding conditions and limited access to potable water, sanitation and health.
At least 95 percent of TB patients can completely recover if they follow their treatment and medical indications, said Cristian Miguel Tapia Torres, Mycobacteriosis Coordinator at the Ministry of Health of Hermosillo, Mexico.
Under the World TB Day, which theme for this year is ‘Reach, Treat, Cure Everyone’, Tapia Torres said that in 2014, 927 new cases were reported in Hermosillo’s Capital City, Sonora; and so far in 2015, 70 cases have been reported.
He said that in this State, 7.3 percent of TB patients abandon treatment and ideally no sick person should quit it. However, international standards indicate that people who stop treatment shouldn’t be more than 10 percent of total patients.
The most common causes of treatment abandonment are alcoholism, drug addiction, malnutrition and social problems, he said.
Tuberculosis, he explained, is an infectious disease caused by the pathogenic bacterial species Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and the most common form of this disease in Mexico is Pulmonary Tuberculosis, but may occur in other organs such as intestine, lymph nodes, bones and kidneys.
The primary treatment, for people who have not suffered the disease before, is composed by the combination of four drugs to attack the bacteria.
It consists of 105 doses distributed in six months taken in two periods, an intensive phase that lasts two and a half months, and a maintenance one that lasts three and a half months.
The Ministry of Health recommends going to a health center for early diagnosis if possible presence of tuberculosis is suspected by symptoms such as cough with phlegm for over 15 days, sudden weight loss, night sweats, shortness of breath and chills.
Source: Notimex
