Uganda tops the list of 30 high-burden countries with tuberculosis (TB), HIV-associated TB and multidrug resistance, Eagle Online can reliably report.
The 30 high TB-burden countries include; Gabon, Mongolia, Zambia and Uganda and others while Ethiopia, Kenya and Thailand transitioned out of the list.
According to statistics released by the ministry of health, at least 30 people in Uganda die from TB every day and more than half of the number are people living with HIV. On average, Uganda records over 90, 000 new cases of TB every year. In 2022, the country registered 94,000 cases of TB.
Dr. Henry Mwebesa, the Director-General of Health Services, at the Ministry of Health TB is four times more common among men than women and the cost of treating it is high especially if treatment is received from private health facilities. This causes poverty but also poor people are more likely to suffer from TB.
“The biggest challenge is that we have failed to identify all the cases yet we have all the facilities for screening, testing and giving treatment. This has contributed to the shooting numbers of cases since many don’t seek treatment. If you cough for more than two weeks, please go testing at the nearest health facility,” he said.
He said the community should stop stigmatizing TB. People should know that TB is like other diseases and it is curable. We should encourage them to seek treatment.
In a bid to fight the disease, Uganda will mark world TB day to raise public awareness about the devastating health, social and economic consequences of tuberculosis (TB) and to step up efforts to end the global TB epidemic.
To ease the burden, Uganda has procured 12 mobile x-ray machines and is in the process of acquiring 21 more machines to strengthen the diagnosis. The machines however are not strictly for TB but for other complications.
