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Ammon News - Jordan's National Tuberculosis Program records about 400 cases of tuberculosis (TB) annually, both pulmonary and extrapulmonary, the majority of whom are non-Jordanians, at a rate of 4.4 per 100,000 people, Technical Advisor of the Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET) Dr. Adel Al Belbeisi told Petra on Wednesday.

Speaking on the occasion of the World Tuberculosis (TB) Day, observed worldwide on March 24th, Belbeisi indicated that pulmonary TB patients are more susceptible to contacting the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), adding that those who live in unhealthy environments are at a higher risk of TB.

March 24th was chosen as World Tuberculosis Day, to commemorate the same day in 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch discovered the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, paving the way for diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Dr. Ghannam Jarrar, a consultant pulmonologist, said TB is a dangerous disease, but does not spread as fast as the coronavirus does, adding that symptoms are usually slow-onset and could take months or even years to appear.

Typically, TB is a pulmonary non age-specific disease, Jarrar indicated, but it could attack other parts of the body, including liver and brain, adding that the body's autoimmunity can neutralize the TB germ for months or years, after which the infection may appear.

Dr. Jarrar emphasized the necessity of eliminating infectious diseases in light of the coronavirus crisis, especially those that spread through the respiratory system, foremost of which is pulmonary TB.

Dr. Hani Ababneh, President of Jordanian Society for Allergy and Immunology of the Jordan Medical Association (JMA), said that TB is one of the most contagious diseases after Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

He pointed out that the danger comes from latent tuberculosis (LTB), which targets the lungs, and appears in the event that the body's immunity is weakened as a result of smoking or drinking alcohol or having cancer or chronic diseases.

Ababneh indicated that TB is transmitted through sneezing and coughing droplets, noting that vaccines inhibit pulmonary TB but they are less effective against extrapulmonary TB.

Head of the TB Department in the Directorate of Chest Diseases and Expatriates Health of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Khaled Akka, said Jordan has made strides in the fight against TB, especially with regard to testing and diagnosis, but he noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had delayed comprehensive TB screening and control processes.

He added that the symptoms of both TB and COVID-19 are largely similar and they include coughing, high temperature, and fatigue. Also, they are both diagnosed using the same method, which is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

However, Dr. Akka warns that a person infected with pulmonary TB risks spreading the infection to about 15 persons, noting that recent surveys revealed 223 cases of TB among Jordanians and non-Jordanians.