Worrying Trend: Fully-Recovered COVID Patients Contracting Tuberculosis

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In a worrying development, several patients who had fully recovered from COVID-19 are contracting tuberculosis (TB).

About 25 such cases have been reported in Karnataka so far. The concerned state government is now screening all those who recover from COVID-19 for TB.

“As a precautionary measure, we have thought of conducting TB screening for all COVID-19 recovered persons,” Karnataka health minister Dr K Sudhakar was quoted as saying by ANI.

“More than 28 lakh people in the state have recovered from the COVID-19 infection. Since both COVID-19 and TB infect the lungs, we have launched a special drive to ensure early detection of TB in people who have recovered from the virus,” the minister informed the assembly.

“People who have recovered from COVID-19 should voluntarily get themselves evaluated for TB. If it is detected at an early stage, the treatment will become easier,” Sudhakar added.

The Union Health minister had said in Lok Sabha during Monsoon session that there was a 25% fall in TB cases in 2020. According to the Health ministry, India reported 1.8 million TB cases between January and December 2020, compared to 2.4 million in 2019.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India will be TB-free by 2025.

Also Read: Fact Check: Is Rise In Tuberculosis Cases Linked With COVID-19?