Media Release
24 March 2008
World TB Day 24 March 2008
The World Health Organization is marking World TB Day this year with the start of a two-year campaign aimed at stopping TB and the Ministry of Health says New Zealanders can do their bit to help stop what remains one of the most common notifiable infectious diseases in the country.
The overall incidence rate of TB in New Zealand is low compared with most countries, but it has not declined over the last 20 years. In New Zealand, there are 300–400 cases of TB diagnosed each year.
Ministry of Health spokeswoman Dr Alison Roberts says control of TB in New Zealand relies on effective diagnosis and treatment, on people completing their course of treatment, and on rigorous contact tracing involving health checks of family members and communities.
“This ensures that people who have had contact with someone with TB can be offered preventive treatment or be regularly examined to ensure early detection of disease. TB is easily treated and, if diagnosed early, the majority of cases have a good outcome.”
Dr Roberts says New Zealanders can all help stop TB by encouraging people to get early diagnosis and supporting people to complete their treatment.
“TB must no longer be considered a disease with stigma that should be hidden as used to be the case in some communities. TB is an infection that can be easily treated, and people need to know once a person is on treatment they are usually no longer infectious."
The World Health Organization (WHO) theme for World TB Day in 2008 is ‘I am stopping TB’. It marks the start of a two-year campaign for people everywhere who are doing their part to stop TB. It is about celebrating the lives and stories of people affected by TB: men, women and children who have taken TB treatment; nurses; doctors; researchers; community workers - anyone who has contributed towards the global fight against TB.
- Patients can stop TB by becoming active participants in their own cure and taking all their medication as prescribed
- Health workers can stop TB by staying alert to the symptoms of the disease and providing prompt diagnosis and treatment
- Researchers can stop TB by engaging in needed research to develop new diagnostics, new drugs and new vaccines
- Communities can stop TB by sharing information to help prevent disease and get treatment to those who need it
In 2005, the rate of new cases of TB worldwide levelled off for the first time since WHO began collecting data about TB. However, it remains a massive global public health problem with around 9 million new cases and almost 2 million deaths each year.
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Questions and Answers
How common is TB in New Zealand?
On average there are about 400 cases of tuberculosis diagnosed in New Zealand each year. In 2006 there were 358 cases.
How common is TB worldwide?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one third of the world's population is infected with TB bacteria. Someone in the world is newly infected with TB bacilli every second. Most of these people do not develop TB disease. Nine million people each year contract tuberculosis disease and 2 million people each year around the world die from it. The disease is preventable and curable.
What are symptoms of TB?
Tuberculosis affects the lungs in 80 percent of cases. A persistent cough is a classic symptom of the disease. Anyone who has had a cough for no obvious reason for more than three weeks, particularly if they have been in close contact with someone who has the disease, should see their doctor. Symptoms vary but weight loss and night sweats are other common symptoms of tuberculosis.
What's the normal course of the disease?
The disease can progress at different rates - some cases progress rapidly while others progress slowly.
It is curable if treated early with specific antibiotics but if cases are not treated, half of sufferers will die from the disease.
How is tuberculosis treated?
Treatment is a combination of at least three antibiotics for a period of at least 6 months
How is it spread?
Tuberculosis is not a highly contagious disease. It is spread by breathing in infected droplets that have been breathed or coughed out by someone with tuberculosis.
What is the Ministry of Health doing to prevent TB?
Production of Guidelines for TB Control
The Ministry of Health produced Guidelines for Tuberculosis Control in New Zealand 2003. This promotes the Direct Observation of Treatment Strategy (DOTS) as a key strategy. DOTS involves a supervisor overseeing the patient swallowing the tablets. Internationally DOTS is considered one of the most cost-effective of all health interventions.
Neonatal BCG immunisation in New Zealand
The current New Zealand policy is that all pregnant women should be assessed by their lead maternity carer during the antenatal period for the risk of TB for their baby. The babies identified as at risk are eligible for the BCG immunisation, which should be given at birth.
Infants eligible for BCG immunisation are those who:
- will be living in a house or with family or whânau where a person has TB or a history of TB
- have one or both parents who are of Pacific ethnicity
- have parents or household members who, within the past five years, lived for a period of six months or longer in a country with a high incidence of TB
- during their first five years will be living for three months or longer in a country with a high incidence of TB
What is the New Zealand Government doing to prevent TB?
In 2004, the New Zealand Immigration Service strengthened TB screening of people from high-risk countries entering New Zealand for six months or more. Prior to travelling to New Zealand, such visitors are required to have undergone chest x-rays to show they do not have active pulmonary TB.
Why is World TB Day marked on March 24?
March 24 commemorates the day in 1882 when Dr Robert Koch astounded the scientific community by announcing that he had discovered the cause of TB, the TB bacillus. At the time of Koch's announcement, TB was rampant, causing the death of one out of every seven people. Koch's discovery opened the way toward diagnosing and curing TB.For further information, please contact Rebecca Walsh (Media Advisor) 021 277 5411