Risk of Tuberculosis is High Among COVID Patients, Warns the Health Ministry


‘Tuberculosis bacteria can start to multiply when the individual’s immunity is compromised for any reason. Thus, people with active COVID infection or those who recovered from COVID-19 must be tested for TB, and prompt care should be taken.’


Back in August 2020, a sudden spike in TB cases was reported among individuals who had COVID-19, but MOHFW said that it is not yet confirmed that those cases were due to COVID-19. Yet states and Union Territories were asked to keep monitoring the cases of TB and COVID-19. Apart from this, multiple advisories have been suggested to reiterate the need for bi-directional screening of TB-COVID and TB-ILI/SARI.

Parallelly, experts detected about a 25% decrease in TB cases due to the impact of COVID-19 related restrictions.

In the recent statement, the ministry added, “TB bacilli can be present in humans in a dormant state and has the potential to start multiplying when the individual’s immunity is compromised for any reason. The same is applicable in post-Covid scenarios, when an individual may develop decreased immunity due to the virus itself or due to the treatment, especially immune-suppressants like steroids,” emphasizing the need to take necessary precautions to avoid this deadly combination of respiratory illnesses.

Source: Medindia



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