GET SCREENED AND TREATED TO AVERT TB DEATHS …As the deadly infectious disease continues to claim numerous lives

By SIMON MUNTEMBA

IT all started over nine months ago when a 10-year-old boy of Lusaka’s Mandevu Township was coughing a lot and losing appetite, but the mother thought it was just a simple case of flu.
However, one night in May 2024, the Grade 5 school boy who had been experiencing flu-like symptoms for some weeks, was roused from a fitful sleep by sharp chest pains coupled with difficulty in breathing and started crying uncontrollably.
His mother, Martha Jere, 38, couldn’t help but worry as she, in panic, wondered about what really was a problem with her son.
Too many questions were hammering through Ms. Jere’s mind as she remembered how she lost her husband over a year ago in a similar circumstance. She was gripped with fear at the possibility of losing her son.
“My son was struggling to breathe and I realised that it was something serious. I was so worried because before he died in 2023, his father also complained of chest pains. For a second, I thought my son was about to die and I immediately took him to the hospital,” Ms. Jere recalled.
That night, her son was given some medicines and advised to go back to the hospital the following morning to have his sputum checked.
The following morning, Ms. Jere took her son to Chipata Level One Hospital, where he was diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB).
“I was shocked. I couldn’t understand how my son had been infected. The doctor explained to me that TB is airborne and it can affect any one of us, anywhere, through breathing in germs from untreated TB patients.
He told me that my son could have been exposed to someone with TB. I was also advised to get tested for TB as my son’s closest contact which I did, and was put on TB preventive therapy,” she narrated.
“To cut a long story short, when my son completed his TB treatment, he recovered fully and he is enjoying good health,” Ms. Jere said with a happy smile.
According to her, taking all the medicines at the right time as prescribed by the health provider helped her son to recover fully.
It is heart-warming to note that Ms. Jere, whose son tested positive for TB was also screened and put on the right treatment to stop the spread of the disease and improve his chances of recovery.
This is so cardinal because TB remains one of the top infectious killers worldwide, claiming millions of lives annually, and Zambia is one of the TB high-burden countries.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 10.6 million people worldwide fell ill from TB in 2022, with 1.3 million dying from the disease.
In Africa, the WHO annual TB report (2023) indicates that TB was the second leading cause of death from a single infectious agent, with nearly 2.5 million people falling ill and around 500, 000 lives lost in 2022.
In Zambia alone, according to the 2023 Demographic and Health Survey, approximately 59, 000 individuals were diagnosed with TB in 2022, resulting in 5, 300 deaths. It is also estimated that TB alone is responsible for at least 40 percent of the deaths among people living with HIV in the country.
These statistics show that TB continues to cause ill-health and deaths in the nation, across all circles, women, and children inclusive.
TB IS PREVENTABLE AND CURABLE – EXPERTS
By definition, TB is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria called mycobacterium tuberculosis that most often affects the lungs. It spreads through the air when untreated TB patients cough, sneeze or spit.
Common symptoms of TB are: prolonged cough (sometimes with blood), chest pains and difficulty in breathing, weakness, fatigue, persistent fever, unexplained weight loss and excessive night sweats.
According to the country’s medical health experts, TB is curable and its medication is safe, free and available at almost all the medical facilities.
In an interview, internal medicine and infectious diseases specialist Dr. Isaac Mugala warned that much as TB is a curable disease, if not treated on time, it can cause serious health problems that can lead to death.
“TB is curable, but if left untreated, it can be fatal for both children and adults. TB occurs when bacteria multiply in the body and affect different organs. While it usually affects the lungs, TB can also affect the kidneys, brain, spine and skin without treatment,” Dr. Mugala said.
Dr. Mugala said there is an urgent need for people to seek medical attention if they have TB symptoms to stop the spread of disease and improve their chances of recovery. He, however, said the symptoms people get depend on which part of the body is affected by TB.
Dr. Mugala explained that TB symptoms may be mild for many months, making it easy to spread the disease to others without knowing it.
He said some people with the disease do not have any symptoms, hence the need to get screened.
Another medical health expert, Hilda Nakazwe who is a TB clinical care specialist said TB deaths can be prevented if those diagnosed with the disease complete their treatment as prescribed.
Dr. Nakazwe urged the TB patients to take their medications at the right time and right dose to prevent drug resistance.
“Unfortunately, we had cases where TB patients failed to adhere to treatment. Others just stop taking medicines when they feel better or for whatever reasons. This has led to what we call drug-resistant TB,” she said.
Dr. Nakazwe explained that drug-resistant TB occurs when TB germs do not get killed in the body by the given medicines as they adapt and become resistant due to a patient not adhering to treatment.
“This is why it is important for TB patients to take the right dosage every day until they finish the treatment to avoid complications. Otherwise, the TB germs will become drug resistant when patients fail to adhere to treatment,” she warned.
On how one can get TB, Dr. Nakazwe said by breathing in germs from untreated TB patients who might be coughing, speaking, singing or sneezing, any person can be infected.
She said the TB germs can remain active for many hours in the environment and can cause infection if inhaled by any person.
“Also, one of the sources of TB is unpasteurised milk. By unpasteurised, I mean untreated milk from an infected cow. Please don’t drink such milk because you can get TB. Either drink boiled or pasteurised mild,” she advised.
Given the testimony from Ms. Jere whose son is a TB survivor, as well as timely advice by the medical health experts, there is an urgent need for all those who have been exposed to someone with TB disease to go to the nearest health facility, get screened and treated.
Parents and guardians should ensure that children are screened for TB, given the correct treatment and finish the treatment.
It is good to note that in recent years, Zambia has focused on scaling-up efforts to find people with undiagnosed TB and link them to care as swiftly as possible.
For instance, the government developed the National TB and Leprosy Strategic Plan (2022-2026) which takes the TB response to another level by embedding strategies and interventions that have the potential to accelerate the attainment of the TB elimination goal by 2030.
According to the Ministry of Health, the objectives is to increase TB treatment coverage for drug-susceptible TB (DS-TB) from 68 percent in 2020 to 86 percent by 2026, and to increase the treatment success rate for DS-TB from 90 percent in 2020 to at least 95 percent by 2026.
The plan also seeks to increase the detection of drug resistant TB (DR-TB) patients from 492 in 2020 to 700 by 2026, and increase treatment success rate for DR-TB patients from 78 percent in 2020 to 85 percent in 2026.
Speaking when she officiated at World Tuberculosis Day commemorations in Kabwe last year, former Minister of Health, Sylvia Masebo, said the 2024 World TB Day theme of “Yes! We can end TB!” signified the need for collective responsibility to prevent and treat tuberculosis, a disease she said continues to claim numerous lives globally.
Ms. Masebo highlighted the country’s remarkable progress in detecting and treating TB patients as a testament to the nation’s dedicated response to the disease.
“Zambia achieved an impressive 49 percent increase in detecting and treating TB patients from 36, 866 in 2019 to 54, 848 in 2022. This high performance was sustained in 2023, with nearly 55, 000 TB patients detected,” Ms. Masebo said.
She, however, stressed the urgent need for collective action, citing persistent myths and discrimination that hinder access to care and contribute to unnecessary deaths.
“Myths and discrimination delay care and lead to unnecessary deaths, despite TB diagnosis and treatment being accessible in all health facilities,” she lamented.
Indeed, as admitted by Ms. Masebo, for the fight against TB to be won, collective efforts are needed from all stakeholders including the citizens.
For those diagnosed with TB, they should know that it is not a death sentence; they just need to start taking medicines and more importantly, complete their treatment as advised by the health care provider.
It is also important to practice good personal hygiene such as cleanliness, coughing up sputum into a container with a lid and ensuring it is disposed of in a pit latrine or rubbish pit.
As a responsible citizen and family member, cover the month and nose when coughing or sneezing to avoid spreading TB to your beloved ones. Besides, encourage all your close contacts to be tested for TB.
For the general citizenry, it is important to avoid direct contact with a person who is coughing or sneezing. Perhaps, wear a mask or avoid overcrowded places. Stay in well ventilated rooms.
Indeed, time is now to prevent TB from claiming more lives by getting screened and treated for the disease at the nearest health facility as the treatment is safe and free.