Doc files plea to change TB treatment protocal

Tribune News Service

Faridabad, September 25

Dr Raman Kakkar, a tuberculosis (TB) specialist, has filed a civil writ petition in the Supreme Court seeking change in the protocol for treatment of TB in the country. Describing the technique adopted by the department concerned as “unscientific” and “improper”, he said the present tuberculosis protocol stipulated only an inadequate medicine regime to cut costs. In doing so, it promoted relapses and generated a lethal drug-resistant strain in the body of the patient, he added.

In his petition, Kakkar argued the current practice of giving three doses of medicine every week should be replaced with the traditional and time-tested daily dose regimen.

He claimed over 10 per cent of tuberculosis patients suffered relapse compared with the global average of three per cent. He said the relapsed cases were harder to treat than first-time infections.

Dr Kakkar, said, “A catagory II patient (one whose disease has relapsed) in India is given only 24 injections (of the antibacterial streptomycin) while everywhere else in the world such a patient generally gets 60 injections.”

While more than 20 lakh TB cases were reported at government hospitals each year in the country, he said the number of such patients in Faridabad were between 3,500 and 4,000 each year. He, however, said majority of private hospitals and clinics gave seven doses a week.