TB remains threat in West Java
BANDUNG, West Java:
The number of tuberculosis cases in 25 regencies and mayoralties in West Java last year was 107 for every 100,000 people, an official says.
The head of the infectious disease eradication at the West Java Health Office, Fatimah Resmayati, said the rate of TB infection in West Java was high compared to East and Central Java.
“Indonesia as a whole is ranked third in the world in terms of the number of TB cases,” she said in Bandung on Monday.
She said the figure of 107 infections per 100,000 people was high, pointing out that Yogyakarta and Bali had been able to push their TB infections rates down to 64. “Reducing TB prevalence is important because by reducing the prevalence, we can focus and control the spread of the disease,” Fatimah said.
According to data from the West Java Health Office, in 2005 there were 34,566 tuberculosis cases detected and treated as of September, 60 percent of which, or 20,251, were new cases. Of the cases, 16,885 involved people in their productive ages. The vice director of medication and treatment at Rotinsulu Lung Disease Hospital, Dr. Tammy J. Sharif, said the high rate of TB infection in West Java was the result of tuberculosis patients failing to complete their entire course of treatment, which can take up to six months. – JP