ASEAN boosts fight vs. TB

Countries in the Southeast Asian region launched the Airborne Infection Disease Platform (AIDP) to strengthen their response, healthcare system, and preparedness against tuberculosis (TB).

The initiative was inaugurated on Thursday at a side event of the 16th ASEAN Health Ministers Meeting, where government leaders from Southeast Asian country member states gathered.

In his message, Department of Health (DOH) chief Ted Herbosa vowed his commitment to champion the cause of AIDP not only for the Philippines but Southeast Asia.

“Our president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and our department of foreign affairs have given their approval for me to chair the Stop TB Partnership, which places an immense sense of responsibility on me personally and to the Philippines,” Herbosa stated.

The Philippines is still among the top eight countries with a high TB burden, but we are also making significant strides in TB control,” Herbosa added.

The Health official explained that one thing the country has learned during the Covid-19 pandemic, is that “a strong system against TB can be a significant asset in dealing with other airborne diseases.”

Herbosa noted that the Philippines began introducing the molecular rapid diagnostic tests for TB as early as 2012 and gradually expanded the laboratory network to make it the primary diagnostic tool by 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic struck.

“Investing in tackling one airborne infection such as TB is an investment into tackling all airborne infections,” he added.

Over 2.4 million people across Southeast Asia are estimated to be affected by TB, based on the Global TB Report 2023.

Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam are on the World Health Organization (WHO) high burden TB list.

Furthermore, the Covid-19 pandemic had devastated national TB prevention and treatment programs as personnel and resources were redirected from TB to Covid-19, leading to an estimated increase of almost half a million additional deaths of TB from 2020 to 2022.

TB prevalence in Phl

The Philippines was one of the severely affected countries during the Covid-19 pandemic in terms of TB services disruption, another DOH official pointed out.

During the pandemic, Dr. Anna Maria Celina, Director IV of the DOH Diseases Prevention and Control Bureau, said the country saw a 37 percent decrease in TV case notification.

In 2022, however, the Philippines observed the highest case notification after the Directly Observed Therapy (DOTS) implementation.

“An integrated approach is necessary, including multi-stakeholder collaboration, involving the private sector, and investing in people who are key in providing essential services,” Celina added.

In the Philippines, TB remains one of the 10 leading causes of death.

The five major risk factors are undernourishment, smoking, alcohol use disorders, diabetes, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

In 2022, an estimated 737,000 people in the country were diagnosed with TB, at a rate of 638 per 100,000 population.

An estimate of 106 Filipinos die of TB every day, based on WHO’s 2023 Global TB Report.