Penyakit TB Kembali

Excerpt from The Star, 27th March 2009

Published: Friday March 27, 2009 MYT 2:16:00 PM

Tuberculosis re-emerging but private doctors unaware

By BEH YUEN HUI
KUALA LUMPUR: The once controlled tuberculosis disease is spreading again in Malaysia because private doctors have failed to realise the disease has re-emerged.

Respiratory Medical Institute (IPR) director Datin Dr Aziah Ahmad Mahayiddin said a standard practice required doctors to send patients suffering from acute cough for two weeks for tuberculosis tests.

“However, the procedure is often not fully adhered to as most private clinics do not have a laboratory,’’ she said, adding that the disease was contagious and needed to be treated immediately.

Dr Aziah said that in the 90s, tuberculosis had been controlled and had dropped to a minimal and certain private practitioners had forgotten about it.

“Some doctors are not aware that it is re-emerging in the country,’’ she said.

Tuberculosis is a highly infectious, often deadly, disease that mostly attacks the lungs and whose classic symptoms include chronic cough, blood-tinged sputum, fever, night sweats and weight loss.

Statistics show reported tuberculosis cases in Malaysia has risen from 61.2 cases per 100,000 people in 2005 to 63.1 cases last year.

She added that a total of 17,506 new cases with 1,523 deaths were reported last year.

Dr Aziah added it was vital to raise the awareness, not only among those in the medical fields but everyone.

She told reporters at the World Tuberculosis Day celebrations, themed “I am Stopping TB”, at IPR here on Friday.

Federal Territory Health Department deputy director Dr Salehuddin Abu Bakar said the department had issued letters, reminding doctors to be aware of the spread of contagious diseases such as dengue and tuberculosis.

He said a person with a weak immune system faced a higher risk of infection.

The Malaysian Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis president Datuk Seri Yeop Jr Yeop Adlan said tuberculosis patients from rural areas could apply for a monthly allowance from them while receiving treatment.

He said successful candidate would be give a maximum allowance of RM400, up to six months - a standard period for the treatment. Visit www.mapth.org.my for details.

IPR, located in Jalan Pahang, provides free treatment for tuberculosis patients for just a RM5 registration fee.