12 000 TB cases detected each year

ON THE BRINK … Over 12 000 people in the country are di- agnosed with TB each year. Furthermore, there were nearly 3 000 deaths due to TB last year alone. File photo

Namibia’s tuberculosis (TB) cases have skyrocketed, with the country reporting an average 12 000 cases every year.

Despite the country seeing a 28% reduction in new TB cases and a 17% reduction in TB deaths over the last five years, cases are still alarming, said Cheryl Amoroso, country coordinator for the United States President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief.

“Despite these gains, I am here today to tell you that our work is not done. Namibia has the ninth highest TB rate in the world,” Amoroso said, while speaking at a World TB Day event recently.

She revealed that on average, 12 000 people in the country are diagnosed with TB each year. Furthermore, there were nearly 3 000 deaths due to TB last year alone.

“TB is curable, and yet we see that an estimated 24% with TB do not survive. This high mortality rate is due to several factors, including delayed diagnosis,” Amoroso said.

She highlighted Namibia’s successful response to HIV, saying the urgent emphasis on diagnosing all cases of HIV and connecting affected individuals to life-saving HIV treatment was the first lesson that could be learn from the HIV epidemic.

Namibia has achieved outstanding success in this area, with approximately 94% of people living with HIV now on antiretroviral therapy.

However, the same measure for TB lags far behind, with only an estimated 58% of TB cases being diagnosed and placed on treatment.

“To close this gap, we need to expand testing, with the latest available tools, to ensure that anyone with symptoms gets tested for TB,” Amoroso said.

Last year alone, there were 8 600 patients with TB, reflecting a 30% increase from 6 599 cases reported in 2021, according to health minister Kalumbi Shangula.

“The Global TB Report indicated that Namibia might have been missing up to 42% of the TB cases based on 2021 estimates.
The reported increase in the number of cases, is not necessarily a negative development as it may appear at first glance, Shangula said.

Shangula said the hard reality is that TB infections, disproportionately, affect persons in resource constrained communities.

This, the minister said, exacerbates the many socio-economic challenges faced by these communities, rendering them more vulnerable.

Factors such as undernourishment, poor living and working conditions and limited access to other services have an effect on people who contract and develop TB and how they cope with TB treatment.

He said combating TB cannot be achieved by the health system alone.

“It requires firm political commitment at the highest level, strong multi-sectoral collaboration beyond health and an effective accountability system. We need a whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach in the fight against TB,” Shangula said.

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