Notification of TB cases down by 60%, disease may spread

NEW DELHI: The Centre has expressed concerns over the 60% decline in notification of tuberculosis cases during the nationwide lockdown, triggered by Covid-19, and raised apprehension that unaddressed cases and higher household transmission could cause a spurt in the disease, with an estimated 5 lakh additional cases and 1.5 lakh more deaths in the next five years, reports Sushmi Dey.
The health ministry has prepared a rapid response plan for National TB Elimination Programme with two primary aims: implement rapid response measures for normalising and expanding coverage of TB services to pre-Covid-19 levels and beyond; and revitalise TB elimination efforts of the country by adopting novel strategic interventions. In a letter to states, National TB Elimination Programme head Dr KS Sachdeva highlighted that one pulmonary TB patient, if untreated, can infect 10-15 individuals in a year.
“This may not only lead to significant morbidity and mortality due to TB, but also an increased likelihood of active transmission in household contacts,” he said in the letter. He said recent modelling studies to understand the potential effect of the Covid-19 response on TB epidemiology published by Stop TB Partnership indicate that over and above the existing cases, there would be an additional 5.1 lakh TB cases and 1.5 lakh TB deaths over the next five years.
The proposed measures under rapid response plan include home sample collection services for contacttracing of household and workplace contacts of patients and replacing smear microscopy with molecular testing. It also suggests bi-directional screening plan for TB and Covid that envisages screening patients for both diseases that often have similar symptoms. All pending nutritional support payments should be cleared within a month, says the letter.