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Programme to control TB

by Bharatha Malawaraarachchi

A five-year strategic plan to control and eliminate Tuberculosis (TB) will be implemented from 2003 to 2007 by the National Programme for TB Control and Chest Disease. The programme will focus on providing proper treatment to TB patients and conducting prevention programmes.

According to Health statistics around 8000 TB cases are reported annually with 400 deaths in Sri Lanka." In the year 2001 alone, 8300 cases were reported in the country. Three years ago there were around 6000 - 7000". added Dr. Kapila Sooriyaarachchi Acting Director of the National Program for TB Control and Chest Disease.

The Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria(GFATM) has donated US dollars 6.1 million for this project while the World Bank had granted US dollars two million. In this context, the proposed five year plan will target on case finding, treatment and follow up and prevention of TB.

According to Dr. Sooriyaarachchi, social stigma about the disease has been identified as a main reason leading to the increase of TB patients and their default to use drugs prescribed to them - over the years in the country.

He explained that social stigma has led not only to the increase of TB patients but also worsened the situation as the defaulting of drugs leads to Multi Drug Resistance TB, which is a very serious condition. Dr. Sooriyaarachchi says the Government has to spend Rs 800,000 for one MDR TB patient for a period of one year whereas the normal treatment for a TB patient costs only Rs 3000 within a period of six months. "The recovery rate of MDR TB patients is only 5 per cent and the balance succumb to the disease," he added.

The five year plan will lay a special emphasis on case holding. "Under this, steps will be taken to further improve the preset DOT (Direct Observe Treatment) system where a health worker daily monitors the patient to see that he takes drugs prescribed per day. This would greatly help to reduce the risk of TB," he said.

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