Tuberculosis Disease is an old disease that continues its importance all over the world. Our Yeditepe University Kozyatağı Hospital  Chest Diseases Specialists draw attention to the fact that although it resulted in high rates of loss of life in the past, the modern treatment used today also reduces the rates of loss of life due to this disease. Explaining that the number of tuberculosis patients continues to decrease in the world and our country, Specialist says, “With the struggle carried out in the world since 2000, 54 million lives have been saved and it is aimed to eliminate this disease by 2030.”

Explaining that the World Health Organization reported that 10 million people had tuberculosis in 2017, our specialists say, “The incidence of this disease varies by region, and two-thirds of the total cases are in Asian countries such as India, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, and South Africa. There are much fewer new cases in America and Europe.”

Its Incidence Is Decreasing Gradually

They explain that the incidence of the disease has decreased over the years thanks to the successful organization of the Ministry of Health in our country, the opportunity to provide uninterrupted medication, the free treatment opportunities, and the use of the system called Directly Observed Treatment (DOT). They say, “According to the 2018 Turkish Tuberculosis Report published by the Ministry of Health, while the number of new patients detected in a year in 2005 statistics was around 27 per hundred thousand, this number decreased to 15 per hundred thousand in 2016. The success of treatment is around 86 percent in patients whose files are recorded and treated as DOT by Tuberculosis Dispensaries.”

How Is It Transmitted?

Tuberculosis disease, popularly known as tuberculosis, is an infectious disease that occurs as a result of the tuberculosis bacteria entering our lungs with the breath we take. This bacterium, which is not found in the air we breathe, is spread into the air when people with untreated tuberculosis in the lungs or airways cough, sneeze, or talk. If the environment is covered and does not receive sunlight, it remains in the air for a long time in the form of small droplets that cannot be seen by the naked eye. When healthy people in this environment breathe this air, the tuberculosis bacteria reach the lungs and infect the person. In the infected person, the bacteria can then spread to the whole body through the blood and cause tuberculosis disease in any organ.

People Who Have Been Treated Before Do Not Transmit the Disease

The main transmission occurs by breathing the air containing the bacteria, tuberculosis in organs other than the lungs or airway (for example, pleural tuberculosis, kidney tuberculosis, bone tuberculosis) does not infect people around because the bacteria cannot go outside. Reminding that the main transmission occurs in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis until the diagnosis, our chest diseases specialist says that the contagiousness disappears approximately 1 month after effective treatment is started. Our specialist points out that people who have been treated for this disease before and are still not actively sick, or people who accompany the sick person but who are not sick themselves, do not transmit this disease to anyone else in any way. 

It Can Be Treated Completely Today with Effective Medications

Our specialists, who say that this disease is seen as something to be ashamed of with a wrong opinion in society and that they try to hide it, point out that this situation can cause problems in treatment. Stating that the disease can be treated completely thanks to the effective medications used today, our specialist continues as follows:

“Since it is an infectious disease, it can occur in anyone. The reason why it is more common in regions with a lower socio-cultural level is that people live in more crowded and less-ventilated environments. Again, the main reasons for the increase in transmission to the environment due to the inability of sick people to apply for health services and the lack of treatment. In our country, those with tuberculosis disease are treated free of charge by the organization of the Ministry of Health, Tuberculosis Dispensaries.”

“Be Careful with A Cough That Lasts More Than Three Weeks”

In pulmonary tuberculosis, symptoms such as prolonged and persistent cough, sputum, loss of appetite, weight loss, excessive sweating at night and sometimes bloody sputum are observed. However, underlining that tuberculosis should not come to mind immediately in every cough, our specialist says, “People who have influenza, simple respiratory tract infection or pneumonia also have a cough. However, if the cough lasts longer than 3-4 weeks and there are other symptoms we have mentioned, it is absolutely necessary to consult a Chest Diseases Specialist and have a chest X-ray.”

There Should Be No Interruption in the Treatment

Tuberculosis treatment is a long-term treatment that requires 6 months of medication and it is very important to take the medications regularly and completely. Pointing out that the disease becomes resistant to existing medications and its treatment becomes much more difficult if there are disruptions in the treatment, our specialists continue their words as follows:

“A file is opened in the Tuberculosis Dispensary for all patients diagnosed with tuberculosis, treatment is followed up, and medications are given. Since it is also a contagious disease, while the treatment is started for the newly diagnosed people, the persons living in the same house with a contact are checked by the dispensary and the preventive medications can be given to those when needed. Especially people living in a house, staying in the same closed environment for a long time, sleeping in the same room and small children are at high risk of infection. The sooner tuberculosis patients are diagnosed and effective treatment is started and completed, the faster this disease can be reduced in society, and the more our children and we will be protected from this disease. It is important to consult the doctor on time.”

Press Coverage: haberturk | yenihaberden.com