Tuberculosis Kill 887 People In Nassarawa

Over 887 people out of about 12,874 have died of Tuberculosis over the period of four years in Lafia, Nasarawa State.

Director, Department of Public Health and Tuberculosis Control, Dr. Danjuma Aboki, in an interview with PUNCH, noted that 80 per cent cases of the disease in the state were pulmonary (lung) TB, while 20 per cent of the ailments were extra-pulmonary TB.

According to Aboki, about 82 per cent of Tuberculosis patients have been treated in the state and are responding to treatment.

He said, “From 2012 to 2016, we were able to register 12,874 TB cases in the state, and within that period, those that were registered and started treatment had to be followed up to see what report would come from them.

“We had to follow up on the patients for a minimum of 15 months, so as to know the number of those that had died, disappearedand those that had been cured in order to give account of everyone.”

He explained that the pulmonary TBpatients were placed on six-month treatments, while the others received 15-month treatments.

He listed some common symptomsof Tuberculosis to include urine with blood, cough, fever, chest pain,difficulty in breathing, and loss of appetite.

According to him, some preventive measures include increased awareness on the intake of cow milk, use of rooms with cross-ventilation, avoiding the use of handkerchiefs by carriers and avoiding the use of feeding/drinking containers by carriers.

Aboki stated that 20 per cent of TB/HIV victims died, adding that the state had 13 general expert centres and 90 TB centres.

Curled from Punch