| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Vicissitude
Joined: 27 Feb 2007
Location: Chef School
|
 Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:16 am Post subject: Patients with drug resistant TB escape |
 |
|
| Quote: |
Forty nine highly infectious tuberculosis patients cut through wire fencing and broke out of a hospital isolation unit, apparently because they wanted to spend Christmas with their families.
The mass escape highlights the problems faced by South Africa as it struggles to cope with an epidemic of virtually incurable TB that feeds off the AIDS virus and kills most of its victims. South Africa has an estimated 5.4 million people living with the AIDS virus.
There have been around 400 confirmed cases of the incurable strain known as XDR-TB, or extremely drug resistant TB. But activists say the actual number is probably much larger, because testing methods are not sophisticated enough to detect the new strain and many people die before they can be diagnosed.
Eastern Cape authorities said Tuesday they were still searching for 29 TB patients who escaped last week from the Jose Pearson Hospital near the coastal city of Port Elizabeth, the South African Press Association said. Twenty had turned themselves in following appeals, and authorities said they hoped more would follow suit.
A spokesman for the department, Siyanda Manana, said the 49 patients � all with multidrug resistant and extremely drug resistant TB � had escaped through holes they cut through the hospital's perimeter fences.
Notices to return, issued by the state attorney's office, were delivered to the patients' homes.
"So far 20 have returned; we are expecting more to come back soon," said Manana.
Although forced confinement of patients violates most medical ethics, authorities say they have no choice but to put the wider public good above individual rights. Confinement for XDR-TB is at least six months.
|
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071218/ap_on_re_af/south_africa_tb_escape&printer=1;_ylt=AvbbKSoE9NahG.eOLdFADPsV6w8F
I wonder how this strain of TB affects people without the HIV virus. Does it basically kill everyone? This is really scary. I also wonder if it can mutate with the HIV virus and cause a serious epidemic around the world. This has me concerned! |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
bacasper
Joined: 26 Mar 2007
|
| Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 4:21 am Post subject: |
|
|
To have XDR-TB, you must first contract regular TB and then not complete the full multi-antibiotic course, allowing the bacterium to mutate into the XDR form.
So don't worry, Vic. Unless you already have TB and have been undertreated for it, you cannot get it. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
pesawattahi
Joined: 30 Sep 2007
Location: it rubs the lotion on it's skin or else it gets the hose again
|
| Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 6:19 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Are you sure about that? The drug resistant strain would be the same strain that would be transmitted unless in its resistant from it becomes uncommunicable, but I doubt it. I know various malarial regions are divided up by what prophylactic the malaria in that area is resistant to. But aside from that what those people did is extremly selfish, they could have given that to family members and condemned them to death. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
