Amapá records more than 560 TB cases in just over two years | Amapá

The disease is caused by a highly transmissible bacterium through the respiratory tract and the lungs are the organs most affected by the disease.

The SVS figures show that in 2017, the records were larger, with a total of 272 occurrences, had dropped the following year, with 245 patients in 2018 and already counting 47 new cases this year.

In children, the best way to prevent TB is to use the BCG vaccine, which is offered in basic health facilities and maternity hospitals. It can be given at birth or at the latest until the child is 4 years, 11 months and 29 days old.

Indigenous peoples, persons deprived of their liberty, living with HIV / AIDS, living on the street and health professionals are appointed by the Ministry of Health within the group vulnerable to the disease.

According to the Ministry of Health, data updated in October 2018 in the TB mortality information system indicates that 12 people died as a result of the disease. In the same year, in the Northern Region, there were 481 deaths, the highest being Pará, with 258 cases.

With more recent indicators, updated in January this year, the Northern Region appears with 7,996 new cases in 2018. Of these, 213 come from Amapá. In Brazil, the number of patients has been reduced to 72,788.

The main symptom of tuberculosis is cough in dry or productive form. Therefore, health agencies recommend that all symptomatic respiratory patients who have been coughing for three weeks or more be investigated for TB. Other signs and symptoms are: evening fever, night sweats, weight loss and fatigue.

The patient is subjected to bacteriological examinations, such as a sputum smear microscopy, a rapid molecular test for tuberculosis, a microbacterial culture and a chest x-ray imaging. The bacilloscopy test, a quick test with a result of 2 hours, is the main way to detect it.

The disease is infectious and is caused by Koch's bacillus, a bacterium that mainly affects the lungs, but can also appear in other organs of the body, such as the kidneys and pleura. The transmission is direct, from person to person, by saliva, in addition to affecting people with poor resistance.

The treatment relies on antibiotic-based pills. It can be made at home and lasts about six months without abandonment. In Macapá, drugs are provided in the basic health units (UBS).

In the case of the most aggressive type of disease, treatment should be carried out at the Reference Center for Tropical Diseases (CRDT), located on Professor Tostes Street, between Henrique Galúcio Avenue and Antônio Coelho Avenue in Carvalho, Trem District. , in the central zone. On this site, the treatment aims at a medium complexity.

The unit serves about 50 patients who are referred by the BHU, who have a difficult diagnosis, a tolerance to drugs or comorbidities such as cancer, kidney failure, HIV, hepatitis, considered serious health problems. The follow-up is done by a multiprofessional team composed of doctors, nurses, psychologists, nutritionists, among others.

In order to prevent illness in children and adolescents, the referendums of the Center for Tropical Diseases launched a campaign in schools. Technicians take information about care, how to fight the disease. They are also informed that the disease is transmitted by air and by means of protection against contagion.