TB CASES INCREASE AMONG EXPATS

The Ministry of Health has reported an increase in tuberculosis (TB) cases in Oman to 9.5 cases per 100,000 population in 2023.

Dr Fatima al Yaqoubi, from the Department of TB and Acute Respiratory Diseases at the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, attributed this increase primarily to the high infection rate among non-omanis, many of whom come from countries with high TB incidence.

The infection rate among Omanis has remained stable since 2018, prompting consideration of mechanisms to achieve a notable decrease.

Statistics for 2023 show 490 recorded TB cases, including 99 in Omanis. There's been a consistent rise in TB cases among non-omanis since 2019. Laboratory-confirmed pulmonary TB cases accounted for 76% of the total cases, with non-omanis constituting 94.3% of these cases. Three cases of drug-resistant TB and 18 deaths were recorded in 2023.

Oman has maintained a low rate of TB cases, consistently below ten per 100,000 population since 2012. The rate decreased from 2008 to 2018, with a slight increase after that due to policy changes in expatriate examination upon arrival, followed by a decline during the COVID19 pandemic in 2020-2021.

Oman launched a national strategy to eliminate tuberculosis on March 24, 2021, aiming to reduce infection rates to less than 100 per million people by 2035

Oman launched a national strategy to eliminate TB on March 24, 2021, aiming to reduce infection rates to less than 100 per million people by 2035, achieving pre-tb eradication stage. The strategy focuses on prevention, diagnosis, treatment and promotion, including strengthening medical staff capabilities, providing effective laboratory tests and treatment, enhancing community awareness, and encouraging research.

Oman's efforts to reduce infection rates and improve health services have been recognised by World Health Organization, citing it as an exemplary experience in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Key awareness messages emphasise that TB is preventable, treatable and curable. Emphasis is placed on diagnosing and treating latent TB in high-risk groups, especially children, individuals from high-incidence countries, and those with compromised immunity.

Oman joined the rest of the world in celebrating World TB Day on March 24, to raise public awareness of the devastating health, social and economic consequences of the disease and to intensify efforts aimed at ending and eliminating it.

According to WHO, TB is the deadliest infectious disease in the world, causing more than 4,100 deaths every day and illness of nearly 28,000 others, which prompted the UN to include the initiative to eliminate TB among the health goals specified in the Sustainable Development Goals.

The COVID-19 pandemic undermined years of progress made in efforts to end TB. For the first time in more than a decade, deaths from TB recorded an increase in 2020 globally, as the number of new registered patients in 2022 reached 7.5mn, the highest since 2019 and an increase of 28% over 2020.