Mozambique’s Tete Province Takes Steps To Combat TB, Drug-Resistant TB

The health department in Mozambique's Tete province is conducting tuberculosis awareness campaigns and training community advocates to educate residents about TB and drug-resistant TB, with a goal of increasing the TB treatment success rate from 32% to 75% in 2008, IRIN/PlusNews reports.

The campaigns aim to inform people about the benefits of adhering to TB treatment regimens and the consequences of halting treatment, including the development of drug-resistant TB. In addition, community workers are being trained to diagnose TB and seek out patients who have not kept appointments. These measures are intended to curb the spread of multi-drug resistant TB and extremely drug-resistant TB, both of which are increasing in Southern Africa, IRIN/PlusNews reports. XDR-TB is resistant to two of the most potent first-line treatments and at least two of the classes of second-line drugs.

Tete province has recorded two XDR-TB cases, but it is difficult to test for the strain in Mozambique, and many officials believe the actual number of XDR-TB cases could be higher. Luis Cumba, health director in the province, said health officials "are monitoring and carefully following" the two registered XDR-TB cases because they "fear that the cases of resistant TB will skyrocket." Cumba added that the health department has "begun to obtain results" from the campaigns.

Tete reported 2,432 TB cases in 2007 and 616 TB cases in the first four months of 2008; however, health officials believe the actual number of TB cases could be higher because many people do not visit health centers for treatment, IRIN/PlusNews reports. All 110 health centers in Tete can treat TB, but most TB cases are referred to the provincial hospital, where HIV, TB and malaria account for the majority of visits.

According to IRIN/PlusNews, Mozambique is one of 22 countries worldwide that account for 80% of the global TB burden. In addition, approximately half of the TB patients in the city of Tete are HIV-positive. About 14% of the 1.4 million people living in Tete province are HIV-positive, compared with a national average of 16%, according to Mozambique's Ministry of Health (IRIN/PlusNews, 9/29).