Free State province
19 September 2006
Extreme Drug Resistant Tuberculosis is the complication of Multi-Drug
Resistant (MDR) TB patients not responding to three or more of the six
categories of the second line drugs.
All MDR TB patients that are not responding to the second line drugs are to
be tested to determine whether they have the XDR-TB strain.
If one is found to be having it, he /she will be isolated and the contacts
will be traced.
The Free State Department of Health has identified six confirmed XDR-TB
patients.
The patients are from Welkom mines, (Goldfields and Harmony). They are
currently being kept in isolation at Ernest Oppenheimer and St Helena Hospitals
in Welkom.
The patients will be transferred to the Provincial Isolation Unit within the
next week.
The necessary preparations are being made at the Provincial Isolation Unit
for the patients to be quarantined properly.
The Department of Health is in close collaboration with the national
Department of Health, with regard to the medication/treatment of these XDR-TB
patients.
The Department of Health is in the process of engaging the mines to trace
all people who were in close contact with these patients for testing.
The Department of Health wants to stress that there is no need for the
public to panic at this stage as the situation regarding the XDR-TB is
contained.
The main symptom of TB is a cough that lasts for longer than two weeks.
People suspecting that they may have TB, should go to their nearest clinic for
testing of sputum monsters.
If TB is not treated, people in close contact with the patient can be
infected also. With proper treatment TB can be cured. As soon as treatment
started, it cannot infect family members or other people any more.
Once treatment started, it should not be interrupted. Multi-drug resistant
TB develops when individuals are not fully adhering to or complete their
treatment.
Enquiries: Gela Naudé
Tel: (051) 408 1278
Fax: (051) 408 1055
Cell: 082 381 9483
E-mail: naudeg@fshealth.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Health, Free State Provincial Government
19 September 2006
