Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the End Tb Summit at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. Mr Modi announced that India has set the aim to eradicate TB from India by 2025. At the Summit, the Prime Minister also launched Tuberculosis Free India Campaign. Around Rs12,000 crore of funding has been allocated to the campaign for the next three years. This will take the activities of National Strategic Plan (NSP) for TB elimination forward in mission mode. The motto of NSP is to ensure every TB patient has access to quality diagnosis, treatment and support. The Prime Minister said, “We have not been successful in curbing Tuberculosis yet. I believe that if something doesn’t yield result even after 10-15 years then we need to change our approach. The situation needs to be analysed.”

India is the country with the highest burden of TB. The World Health Organisation (WHO) TB statistics in 2016 gave an estimate figure of 2.79 million cases of TB for India. Let’s learn about the causes of TB. There are two types of TB -  Latent TB and Active TB. In Latent TB, you have a TB infection, but the bacteria remain in your body in an inactive state and there are no symptoms. Although it can turn into Active TB. Hence, treatment is important for the person with Latent TB. Active TB makes you sick and is contagious. Symptoms of Active TB include excessive and prolonged coughing, chest pain, unintentional weight loss, fatigue, night sweats and fever.

Causes of TB

  • Tuberculosis is caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium. It spreads from person to person through microscopic droplets released in the air. This can happen when a person with the untreated, active form of TB coughs, spits or sneezes. This makes TB contagious. You’re much likely to get TB from someone you live or work with.

  • The number of cases of TB has also increased due to widespread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Person who is infected with HIV has a suppressed immune system, making it difficult for the body to control TB bacteria. As a result, people with HIV are more likely to get TB and to progress from latent to active disease.

  • Since antibiotics began to be used to fight TB, some strains have become drug-resistant. Some TB germs have developed the ability to survive and that ability gets passed on to their descendants. Drug-resistant strains of TB emerge when an antibiotic fails to kill the bacteria it targets. Although MDR-TB is treatable and curable with specific anti-TB drugs, they are often limited or not readily available. In 2012, around 4,50,000 people developed MDR-TB.

Although anyone can contract this infectious disease, people with weakened immunity are more vulnerable. A strong immune system can often fight the bacteria of TB, but several diseases and medications can decrease your immunity. These include HIV/AIDS, diabetes, certain cancers and cancer treatments, malnutrition and kidney disease. It is highly recommended to visit a doctor if you have above symptoms or other medical problems. The doctors will perform certain tests to determine the cause. Keep your environment as clean as possible and healthy sanitation practice is recommended. If you have been diagnosed with active TB, make sure you start your treatment as soon as possible and try not being around people so that the disease does not spread.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2018 02:02 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).