HIV/AIDS Epidemic Fueling Spread of TB in Cote d’Ivoire, Health Officials Say

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is fueling the spread of tuberculosis in Cote d'Ivoire, health authorities said on Friday, AFP/Yahoo! News reports. In 2006, there were 21,204 TB cases detected in Cote d'Ivoire, compared with 16,031 in 2002, and the cases were connected to the country's high HIV/AIDS prevalence, according to the latest statistics. In addition, TB incidence in the country is 393 cases per 100,000 people, compared with the average of 290 cases per 100,000 people across sub-Saharan Africa, according to Jacquemin Kouakou, director of Cote d'Ivoire's national TB program. Health officials on Friday announced an intensified effort to control TB, including increasing the number of screening centers from 86 to 110 within three years. The new measures also aim to achieve earlier TB detection by having one microscope per 100,000 people in adherence with World Health Organization standards, Kouakou said. Currently there is one microscope per 250,000 people, Kouakou added (AFP/Yahoo! News, 3/16).