India shifting gears to get on the right track to #endTB
SHOBHA SHUKLA, BOBBY RAMAKANT - CNS
India with the highest TB burden globally has made a drastic shift recently to reach the unreached people with free TB services. Indian government has launched a 100 days-focussed campaign (7 December 2024 to 24 March 2025) to intensify progress to #endTB through improved case detection, reduction in diagnostic delays, and enhanced treatment outcomes across 347 most affected districts in 33 states of the country.
The aim is to find the missing TB cases in the most at risk communities - as early as possible - to help stop further spread of infection and reduce unnecessary human suffering and risk of TB death (by putting those diagnosed with TB on an effective treatment, and those with latent TB on TB preventive therapy).
India's Health Minister Sri Jagat Prakash Nadda had said two weeks ago that the "focussed campaign of 100 Days is an effort to quickly detect and treat TB patients in 347 most affected districts in 33 states across the country. The government is working on the 4Ts - Test, Track, Treat and Technology - to eliminate TB."
These 347 districts of India (out of around 800 districts in the country) were chosen on the basis of- if TB mortality rate in 2023 was equal to or more than the national average of 3.6%, or the identification of new and potential TB cases was below the national average of 1700 per 100,000 population, or TB incidence rate was equal to more than 200 per 100,000 population, or TB prevalence rate was over 400 per 100,000 population. Maximum number of the districts are in the southern state of Karnataka (31), followed closely by Maharashtra (30), among other states or union territories.
Screening everyone regardless of TB symptoms is game-changing
100 Days-focussed campaign is finding more TB in high risk and other vulnerable populations, which includes people living in remote and underserved areas, those who are undernourished, people living with HIV, people with diabetes, and close contacts of people with active TB disease, or those who smoke tobacco or use alcohol.
The 100 days campaign is to find more TB and link them to TB treatment, care and support services, as well as help manage the risk factors (such as, diabetes, undernourishment, etc) and provide TB preventive therapy to those who do not have active TB disease.
Game-changing approach is to screen everyone for TB and not just those with the 4 TB symptoms (cough that lasts more than 3 weeks, loss of appetite and unintentional weight loss, fever, and night sweat). This is based on scientific evidence and India's National TB Prevalence Survey 2019-2021, and sub-national TB prevalence surveys. India's survey had found that almost half of the TB patients were asymptomatic and could only be found when screened with X-rays.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
