In the CDC podcast posted on October 10th, 2008, Dr. Oeltmann talks about the increase and dangers of MDR TB due to a common factor: the misuse of antibiotics used to treat regular TB. It's extremely important for someone to follow their medication regimen if they are treating TB. If they sporadically take a drug for TB, the drug can't do its job completely, and then TB survives within the body and ultimately develops a resistance to the drug.
We should be very concerned about MDR TB because it is resistant to at least two of the best drugs used to treat TB. What a dilemma! There have been 45 reported cases of MDR TB in the US--which may seem small, but it seems like it can spread pretty easily according to Dr. Oeltmann. For example, he said that most of the Thai refugees who tested positive for MDR TB were socially linked within their refugee camps in California; this was the main cause of the outbreak in camps. And since MDR TB is resistant to our strongest drugs, who's to say that those 45 cases can't jump to 100, to 1000, etc.? It's a scary thought. Obviously, I am concerned about MDR TB because it is a potentially fatal disease, because vaccines aren't useful and aren't even recommended in this case, and because it's not just any problem across the ocean to be ignored. In fact, TB is a global epidemic.
I think MDR TB has changed the whole process of treating and managing other diseases not only in incoming refugees but in our society as well. Instead of giving patients their drugs for treatment and setting them off on their own, health officials are now creating programs (or something like that) to ensure that their patients come in to take their medicine as recommended. If this keeps up, hopefully the threat of MDR TB--including countless other diseases--will be the least of our worries.
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I agree with the health programs that officials are setting up. It is too easy for patients to go home with their medicine and forget to take it or throw it away if they think there is some sort of stigma attached. Even though the health officials will be seen as "big brother" in some cases it is overall for the patients wellbeing and the greater good of society. However, in some societies there may be a stigma attached with going to a clinic or being a part of a program...so there will always be obstacles no matter how great the obvious benefit.
ReplyDeleteI agree. It's a large problem. I am guilty of doing so. I know that I've discontinued antibiotic use (didn't finish the bottle) before, but I do now. I digress. I think that even though treatment is very important, the fact that current treatments are becoming obsolete puts even more focus on a need for education and an emphasis on preventive care.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well. As difficult as DOT may be, it is very important and could be key to eradicating some diseases. I also agree with Phil that prevention needs to be emphasized. What better way to stop a disease from becoming MDR than to prevent it all together?
ReplyDeleteI defnitly agree that the threat of MDR TB is terrifying and needs to be corrected before there is a massive outbreak. However, I'm not sure if requring patients to go to clinics to take their medications seems very unrealistic for most people. In numerous countries people do not have the transportation to get in to a clinic daily, therefore they would miss out on the treatment entirly. There has to be a better way of preventing the spread of MDR TB
ReplyDeleteI also agree what a scary thought that if you do not take your medication regularly TB can turn into MDR TB. I found the program DOT to be very helpful in the prevention of causing this disease to spread and become MDR TB. Hopefully in the future they can think of better ways to cure this disease and the prevention of it becomming more serious.
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