Dimapur, April 28 (MExN): The Access to Rights and Knowledge (ARK) Foundation has appealed the Nagaland State TB and AIDS program to revitalize the IPT (or isoniazid prophylaxis) programme in the State.
It stated that studies have shown IPT as a Tuberculosis Preventive Treatment (TPT) reduces the rate of HIV mortality by 47% among PLHIV.
“Yet, given the current scenario where PLHIV are not receptive towards this due to the complete absence of IPT Treatment Literacy with the PLHIV community, proper stock keeping and supply chain mechanisms of INH, VB6 (pyridoxine), and the lack of infected and affected community's involvement’, the State’s IPT programme has not lived up to the commitments and expectations of the communities,” it added.
Referring to the news report which mentioned that TB is killing more PLHIVs than AIDS virus, ARK added that one of the core reasons behind it is latent TB infection which is a strain of the TB bacteria that infects the person but does not make the person sick.
Citing global reports, the Foundation stated that about one-third of the world’s population has latent TB which may develop into an active form of TB in the near future. “Such an incident becomes a great area of concern among the PLHIV Community due to their health condition of immune suppression in the absence of ARVs. This results in TB killing that person rather than the AIDS virus itself,” it supplemented.
Reiterating that TB as a co-infection of HIV continue to be the lead cause of morbidity and mortality among the PLHIV population in India, the ARK Foundation stated that new strategies and policy reforms that aim to eliminate TB, are in place. Yet, the progress of the programmes, added by the COVID-19 related lockdown has been a great derailment as far as the intended progress is expected, it shared.
Further, it cited the UN HLM on TB political declaration committed to preventing TB among the risk groups by providing TPT targeting 30 Million people by 2022.
Accordingly, India has set a target of reaching out to 2,252,910 by 2022, it informed.
In this regard, it urged the State TB and AIDS programme to revitalize the IPT program in the State and also to start advocating with the National program to initiate and prepare towards introducing better TPT strategy in the form of 3HP, which is scientific and considered to be a better option than Isoniazid standalone.
ARK Foundation also sought rejoinder from the State TB officer about the level of community-based response for TB, asking to define the level of such response in detail.
It also sought to ‘put the record straight’ by mentioning that formation of State and district forums does not hold water if it was formed but literally, no meetings are being conducted as expected.
