Centre starts TB prevalence survey in Punjab from Patiala

The central government has started the National TB (tuberculosis) Prevalence Survey in Punjab from Patiala on Wednesday. A mobile X-ray unit fabricated with CBNAAT

The central government has started the National TB (tuberculosis) Prevalence Survey in Punjab from Patiala on Wednesday. A mobile X-ray unit fabricated with CBNAAT machine for the survey was flagged off from the Government Medical College in city.

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Dr Vishal Chopra, deputy medical superintendent and director of State TB Training and Demonstration Centre Patiala, said that the central government has commissioned a national survey for state-wise prevalence of microbiologically confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis in India. The survey is funded by the Union ministry of health and family welfare. The study will help in understanding the burden of TB and help in planning interventions to achieve the target for ending TB in India.

For the survey, 625 clusters have been identified across country and in Punjab 15 clusters have been selected. The State TB Cell, State TB Training and Demonstration Centre, and Punjab and Intermediate Reference Laboratory of Patiala will be co-ordinating implementation of the survey in Punjab.

Implementation of the survey at national level is being co-ordinated by the ICMR-National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (Chennai), with support from the Central TB Division, Union ministry of health and family welfare, Indian Council of Medical Research, department of health research New Delhi, and World Health Organization (WHO).