Anambra State Government has approved the establishment of one hundred and ten additional Directly Observed Treatments (DOTS) Centres for Tuberculosis (TB) patients to reduce the burden of the disease.
The new centres would bring to six hundred and ninety, the number of TB Centres in the state from an initial five hundred and eighty.
Dr Ugochukwu Chukwulobelu, Programme Manager, Anambra Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Buruli Ulcer Management, said this in an interview with newsmen in his office at the Jerome Udoji Secretariat, Awka.
The medical practitioner said the increase in the TB-DOTS centres would ensure easy access and sustained intervention measures aimed at eliminating the scourge of TB in the state.
He noted that when it comes to TB, Anambra is one of the high burdened states in the country and it was estimated that one in every ten residents in the state has TB, also in the last quarter of 2020; they diagnosed one thousand and two new cases.
Dr. Chukwulobelu said the Governor Willie Obiano led-administration and its partners recognised this problem and that was the reason they were investing in the establishment of more TB-DOTS centres across the state.
He explained that DOTS were centres for testing and treatment of TB to reduce the number of cases, and also where healthcare workers observe patients as they take their medicine.
He further said that the test and diagnosis are free; treatment is also free and people need not travel far to get diagnosed or treated for TB.
The programme manager described TB as an airborne disease caused by bacteria, called mycobacterium tuberculosis, which usually attacked the lungs and could also damage other parts of the body.
According to him, it spreads through the air when a personwith tuberculosis of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes or talks.
The medical expert pointed that TB is treatable and curable if detected early and it may lead to death if not detected and treated early and this is why they want to equip people with the right knowledge to avoid casualties from TB cases.
Persistent coughs for two weeks or more may be due to TB and needs to be further investigated; residents are advised to report suspected cases of TB within their communities.
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