Online survey «Everything you need to know about tuberculosis»
The situation with the incidence of tuberculosis in the city of Zaporizhzhia, as in Ukraine as a whole, remains tense, and due to the deterioration of living conditions and martial law, it tends to worsen.
During 2023, 193 people fell ill with tuberculosis in the city of Zaporizhzhia, of which 191 people had respiratory tuberculosis; 5 people died. Cases of the disease have become more frequent among employees of enterprises, institutions, and organizations.
Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by mycobacteria tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria).
The main route of its transmission is erogenous (through the air), mainly from a person with the bacterial form of pulmonary tuberculosis. When coughing, sneezing, or talking, infectious particles of secretions containing mycobacteria of tuberculosis enter the air. The risk of mycobacteria penetrating the lungs of a healthy person depends on the concentration of infectious particles in the air and the duration of inhalation of infected air.
Symptoms of tuberculosis: cough for more than 2 weeks; elevated body temperature for more than 7 days; difficulty breathing; chest pain; poor appetite, unexplained weight loss; constant weakness; increased sweating, especially at night; hemoptysis (the presence of blood in the sputum that is released when coughing).
The most common mistake people make is ignoring the first symptoms of the disease. Citizens often perceive the symptoms as a common cold and try to treat themselves. If you have such symptoms, you should seek help from your family doctor for an examination, diagnosis, and treatment. Untimely treatment leads to an extension of the treatment period and the development of complications of the disease. The danger also lies in the fact that one patient with tuberculosis, who does not know about his diagnosis and does not receive treatment, can infect about 10-15 people in a year.
Today, tuberculosis is a completely curable disease, the success of treatment depends on the timely start of taking effective medications, the patient’s discipline in following all the doctor’s recommendations and regular medication intake. Tuberculosis treatment in Ukraine is free.
Those who are in a high-risk group, in particular people with chronic diseases, should regularly undergo an examination by a family doctor once a year, and on his recommendation and if there are appropriate symptoms, undergo fluorography.
Prevention will help reduce the risks of tuberculosis. General advice that will always be useful is a healthy lifestyle, giving up alcohol and smoking. Also – a healthy balanced diet with a sufficient content of fats, proteins, and vitamins. Sports or regular physical exercises, staying in the fresh air will also help to maintain health.
If an employee of an enterprise (institution, organization) develops tuberculosis, it is necessary to carry out anti-epidemic measures at the workplace to prevent the spread of tuberculosis among other employees who have had contact with the patient. People with weakened immunity and concomitant diseases are especially at risk.
If a person has had contact with a patient with tuberculosis, he or she should definitely contact a family doctor for a screening questionnaire aimed at identifying risk factors for tuberculosis and its symptoms.
One of the measures to improve the information of the population and groups at increased risk of tuberculosis is the introduction of an online questionnaire with motivation for further contact with a family doctor. The Center for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine has developed a special online test for testing for tuberculosis. The screening questionnaire consists of 13 questions that can be answered in just 5 minutes. Based on the results of the questionnaire, you can find out whether there is a risk of a person having tuberculosis and whether additional testing is recommended.
Anyone can fill out the online questionnaire at the following link: http://tbtest.phc.org.ua
