Dakshina Kannada sees rise in TB cases, Mangaluru most affected

MANGALURU: There has been a significant rise in the number of tuberculosis cases in Dakshina Kannada, especially Mangaluru North, over the past 15 days but experts say there is not enough evidence to suggest a link with Covid-19. They instead attribute it to better detection.
Data from the health and family welfare department shows cases in Mangaluru North account for 34% of the district’s 977 active TB cases, while Mangaluru South has 134 cases, Belthangady 110 and Bantwal 102.The other regions including Mulky, Moodbidri, Puttur and Sullia have reported less than 100 cases.
Dr Badrudeen MN, district TB officer, told TOI: “At this point, we cannot link Covid with the rise in TB cases. Of the total TB cases reported in the district, only 15 patients either tested positive for Covid-19 or were primary contacts of people who had the viral disease.”
He said now that Covid-induced restrictions have been lifted and with better transportation facilities, more people are reaching out to OPDs of various hospitals. “These are people who have had persistent cough or fever for more than two weeks, blood in the sputum, pain in the chest, weight loss or loss of appetite and other symptoms. Nearly 960 TB patients were under treatment during the past fortnight.”
He said for the next two months, the administration will launch a drive to trace tuberculosis patients. The drive will begin from Monday.
“Patients are usually cured within six months. People showing symptoms are sent for sputum examination and chest X-ray. If they test positive, they will be registered under Nikshay to keep track of them from diagnosis to treatment, and to monitor them for six months. The direct benefit transfer scheme of the government provides nutritional support for TB patients. Under this scheme, a patient gets Rs 500 per month for their nutritional requirements,” he said.
Last year, there was a drop in the number of TB cases which could be due to Covid-19 restrictions. The district reported 3,256 cases in 2018, a total of 3,439 in 2019 and 2,472 in 2020.