Researchers embarking on finding undiagnosed TB cases in Cape Town found that Mitchells Plain was the community with the largest undiagnosed cases of TB.
The study by the US National Institute of Health and the South African Medical Research Council embarked on a case finding of undiagnosed TB in Mitchells Plain and Klipfontein in Cape Town.
From both communities, 5 974 people were tested. During the pre-screening, 584 of those who were identified to have symptoms of TB or were HIV positive were grouped as a ‘targeted testing’ cohort, which found 10% of them having undiagnosed TB.
UCT Professor Keertan Dheda, who was the principal investigator of the research, said teams camped in the two communities, flyers were dispatched for awareness of the TB testing, and those who voluntarily partook were screened and given five questions before being tested. Dheda said through these tests, a number of undiagnosed cases of TB were found.
“Due to the living conditions in informal settlements where locals are in close contact with each other, alcohol consumption is high and smoking is excessive. Undiagnosed TB patients are prone to spread TB,” he said.
Doctor Ali Esmail, a specialist physician and pulmonologist who led and project managed the study, said that between the two communities, Mitchells Plain was the community with the largest undiagnosed cases of TB.
Zimasile Bomela, a nurse who was testing the patients from the communities, said that the patients who were diagnosed with undiagnosed TB, admitted to displaying symptoms such as coughing but did not take action because the communities are under-resourced.
“The patients said that they stand in long queues to access healthcare, and some are weary of doing so because they have livelihoods to protect standing in queues for a full day will compromise their jobs,” she said.
Esmail said that most of the patients found with undiagnosed TB said that they ignored the symptoms like coughing because they smoke on a regular basis, they saw nothing untoward with their repetitive coughing.
Dheda said though the cases were found in the two communities, we should all be cautious and concerned. He said that an estimate of 400 000 TB cases in South Africa come from Cape Town. Dheda said TB is a killer disease and places major burdens on the South African economy, affecting the GDP.