Tuberculosis dey curable with diligent treatment
Tuberculosis (TB) na di 2nd killer disease after Covid-19 for di world and e dey kill 1.5millions pesins evri year globally.
Program Manager for Tuberculosis and Leprosy Rivers State Dr. Victor Oris-Onyiri say di Covid-19 pandemic affect TB intervention globally because all focus dey on Covid-19 and so most of di diagnostic machines dem bin dey use for TB, dem convert am to test for Covid-19.
Also di lockdown for many countries prevent many TB patients from getting dia treatment and e also affect diagnosing new cases so many go untreated but dat no be di case for Rivers State.
Dr. Oris-Onyiri say dem anticipate say di Covid-19 pandemic fit affect evritin so dem plan ahead and dat one help dem get good results.
Dr. Oris-Onyiri say "we plan say di TB Health workers for di local goments and communities go do regular house to house checks and tests and sake of dat dem test over 98,000 pesins last year and over 8000 pesins test positive with 92% success rate.
Na only Rivers get dis kind of result but we still need to do more work because Nigeria get over 200,000 cases of TB infections."
Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health Rivers State Dr Chikanele Utchay say Rivers State don surpass di global fund target for di State at 168% with 92% success rate in TB treatment for 2021 but e still get 9000 infected pesins wey dey missing and dis dey fuel infection for communities.
Dr Utchay say di target na to reduce TB incidence from 219 in a 100,000 population to just one in a 100,000 population.
She add say di performance for 2021 give dem hope say dem fit achieve dat one by 2028 if evribodi work togeda.
'Wit diligent treatment, I survive TB'
25 year old Victor Hart from Bonny na TB survivor. E tell BBC Pidgin say na for 2017 im begin get symptoms like serious cough and weight loss. Wen e go do sputum test, e come out positive for TB.
Dis sickness Hart say affect im fashion design business as om no fit work for over a year, but with diligient treatment, im make full recovery and now im dey free of Tuberculosis.
"I undergo 20 months of treatment. I take injection evriday for 8 months and drugs for di 20 months but at di end, I thank God say I don recover fully. I do anoda test and e show say I dey free of TB," im tok.
Six tips to survive Tuberculosis
Di State TB Program Manager Dr Oris-Onyiri say TB dey curable do patients no need to die from am. E give some tips to survive am to include:
- Strict adherence to di TB treatment. Dis na because if TB patients no follow and take dia drugs, dem fit develop resistance. But if dem strictly take dia medications, dem fit recover fully within six months and some countries dey do four months treatment.
- Early TB diagnosis and treatment. If TB cases come late di treatment no go dey as effective because if di TB don damage some internal organs, di medication go only kill di micro-organisms but di organ damage no go dey resolved.
- Good nutrition. Take di medication with good food.
- Actively screen pipo wey dey live with HIV for TB so dem fit get treatment for latent TB as TB no one illness wey HIV patients dey commonly get.
- Vaccination. Make sure children get di BCG vaccine because e dey protect against TB.
- Find pipo with TB for community and treat dem early because na so di community go dey safe from Tuberculosis. House to house testing na one effective way to check community spread of TB.
Wetin be Tuberculosis?
Na mycobacteria Tuberculosis dey cause dis chronic disease wey dey affect di lungs and pesin wit TB fit transmit am through di air to odas if e cough, sneeze, shout , laugh or sing song.
Signs and symptoms of TB include long cough, excessive sweating, weight loss, coughing up blood, chest pain and fever.
Nigeria dey rank first for Africa and 6th for di world among countries with highest burden of TB.
World Health Organisation (WHO) don target 2030 to clear TB for di world and and dem dey call on stakeholders to join bodi 'Invest to end TB and save lives' and dis na di theme for world TB day 2022.
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