Despite screening every newly diagnosed tuberculosis (TB) patient for Covid, the TB-Covid coinfection rate has remained under than 1% inMaharashtra.
Going by the state health departments latest report, 709 of 1.36 lakh patients with underlying TB subjected to compulsory Covid screening between January and September this year tested positive for coronavirus, pegging the states TB-Covid coinfection rate at 0.5%.
The coinfection rate is very low compared to Covid infection rate among the general population, which at a minimum is up to 3%.
Experts have, however, stressed on extensive studies to gauge TB patients exact vulnerability by expanding the Covid diagnosis.
Currently, TB patients are screened compulsorily for Covid, but only once. Despite TB being a chronic disease, the status of Covid infection is not captured periodically unless the patient exhibits worsening symptoms, experts have underlined.
A history of active as well as latent TB can also increase the risk of contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Nearly 2 lakh people are diagnosed with TB every year in India. In the state, nearly 20,000 are diagnosed per month. In 2018, an estimated 1 crore people contracted TB worldwide.
Maharashtra started screening TB patients for Covid-19 the after Union government-issued bi-directional screening of Covid-19 and TB started in September 2020.