World Tuberculosis Day is observed on March 24th every year to create awareness about the global tuberculosis epidemic and promote tuberculosis control efforts to eliminate the disease.
The theme of World TB Day in 2024 remains “Yes! We Can End TB.”
Program Manager of National TB Control at the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Yaw Adusi-Poku has highlighted the alarming rise in TB cases.
According to him, “In 2022, we found 16,500 cases of TB, which escalated to over 19,000 in 2023. This upward trend necessitates heightened awareness and advocacy efforts to combat the disease effectively,” he said in an interview with Helen Appiah-Ampofo on 3FM Sunrise Morning Show on March 25.
Dr. Adusi-Poku emphasized the importance of creating awareness and advocacy drives to encourage individuals to seek diagnosis and treatment promptly. “TB is a curable disease, and with early detection and treatment, individuals can lead healthy, fulfilling lives,” he said.
Explaining the nature of TB, Dr. Adusi-Poku described it as a bacterial infection that primarily affects the lungs but can spread to other organs if left untreated. He stressed the airborne transmission of TB and its potential to cause severe health complications if not addressed promptly.
“Tuberculosis is a germ, is a bacterium that lives with people. So, somebody has the disease. We have the infection, and we have the disease. A lot of people have the infection. But they are fine. So, we say they are in latency. One day they will break down. Unfortunately, if they break down, meaning they start expressing symptoms. That is when they also infect others. So clearly, when they cough or when they shout or when they sneeze, it’s in the air, it goes into the air, you being close will breathe this organism and they enter, the first point of call is your lungs. So, it’s a disease,” he asserted.
A TB survivor, Mr. Richmond Morrison, shared his harrowing experience with the disease, corroborating Dr. Adusi-Poku’s insights.
“I experienced symptoms such as coughing, night sweats, and fever, all of which are indicative of TB,” Morrison revealed. He also highlighted the lack of education about TB in previous years, underscoring the importance of continuous awareness efforts.
The dialogue underscored the critical need for sustained advocacy and education initiatives to combat TB effectively. World TB Day serves as a reminder of the ongoing battle against this preventable and treatable disease, urging stakeholders to unite in their efforts to control and eventually eradicate TB.
By Joselyn Kafui Nyadzi