KNH holds World Tuberculosis Day 2023 at Mama Margaret Uhuru Hospital (MMUH)

By Godfrey Osang’ir

Kenyatta National Hospital through the Respiratory & Infectious Diseases Unit (RIDU) commemorated World TB Day at Mama Margaret Uhuru Hospital (MMUH).

World TB Day is celebrated annually on 24th March to raise public responsiveness in regard to the devastating health, social and economic consequences of the disease.

This date too marks the day in 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch announced that he had discovered the bacterium that causes TB which eventually opened the avenue for the diagnosis and curing of the disease.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Yes! We Can End TB!” The theme seeks to convey a message of hope that getting back on track to turn the tide against the TB epidemic is possible through high-level leadership, increased investments, faster uptake of new WHO recommendations and adoption of innovations, accelerated action and multi-sectoral collaboration.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infection by a bacterium called Mycobacterium Tuberculosis. The bacterium can affect any part of the body but the most common site is the lungs, affecting about 60%-80% of the population.

TB remains one of the global health threats which has claimed millions of lives for many years across the globe.

In Kenya, it still poses a huge threat to economic development as more than 905 cases of deaths related to the disease occur annually among adults in the most productive age groups.

The KNH Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Evanson Kamuri, EBS, avers that while significant progress has been made towards controlling the global burden of TB over the past decades, more efforts are still needed and that emerging issues such as resistance, threaten to revert the gains made regarding TB control and care.

“The knowledge base for TB remains a rapidly expanding research area and global guidelines are continually being reviewed such as incorporating new anti-tubercular drugs to tackle issues of resistance,” said Dr. Kamuri.

Dr. JacksonO. Atina, HoU Respiratory Infectious Disease Unit (RIDU) KNH

PHOTO | STEVE ARWA

Health professionals, policymakers, patients and the general public need to keep up-todate with current trends in TB management and control. This will be essential for the efficient adoption of global guidelines to a country-level situation, particularly taking into consideration issues such as disease burden, health system structures and available resources.

Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) is at the center of TB management and control in the country. In Nairobi, KNH diagnoses most cases of