Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Pakistan.
Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan.
Epidemiol Infect. 2022 Feb 22;150:e41. doi: 10.1017/S0950268822000358.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the cause of tuberculosis (TB), a granulomatous illness that mostly affects the lungs. Pakistan is one of the eight nations that accounts for two-thirds of all new cases of developing TB. TB has long been an endemic disease in Pakistan. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, the nation has over 500 000 incident TB infections per year, with a rising number of drug-resistant cases. Recently, the coexistence of COVID-19 and TB in Pakistan has provided doctors with a problem. Fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing are all signs of COVID-19. After SARS-CoV-2 infection, cough might persist for weeks or months and it is frequently accompanied by persistent tiredness, cognitive impairment, dyspnoea or pain - a group of long-term consequences known as post-COVID syndrome or protracted COVID. Coughing with mucus or blood, and coughing that continues over 2 months are indications of TB. The same clinical presentation features make it difficult for healthcare personnel to effectively evaluate the illness and prevent the spread of these fatal diseases. Pakistan lacks the necessary healthcare resources to tackle two contagious diseases at the same time. To counteract the sudden increase in TB cases, appropriate management and effective policies must be implemented. Thus, in order to prevent the spread of these infectious diseases, it is critical to recognise and address the problems that the healthcare sector faces, as well as to create an atmosphere in which the healthcare sector can function at its full potential.
结核分枝杆菌是结核病(TB)的病原体,这是一种主要影响肺部的肉芽肿性疾病。巴基斯坦是导致三分之二新发病例的 8 个国家之一。结核病在巴基斯坦一直是地方性疾病。根据世界卫生组织(WHO)的估计,该国每年有超过 50 万例新发病例,且耐药病例不断增加。最近,巴基斯坦 COVID-19 和结核病的同时存在给医生带来了一个问题。发烧或发冷、咳嗽、呼吸急促或呼吸困难都是 COVID-19 的症状。在 SARS-CoV-2 感染后,咳嗽可能会持续数周或数月,并且经常伴有持续疲劳、认知障碍、呼吸困难或疼痛-一组被称为新冠后综合征或长期 COVID 的长期后果。咳痰或带血,以及持续 2 个月以上的咳嗽都是结核病的迹象。相同的临床症状使得医疗保健人员难以有效地评估病情并防止这些致命疾病的传播。巴基斯坦缺乏必要的医疗保健资源来同时应对两种传染病。为了应对结核病病例的突然增加,必须实施适当的管理和有效的政策。因此,为了防止这些传染病的传播,必须认识和解决医疗保健部门面临的问题,并营造一个使医疗保健部门能够充分发挥潜力的环境。