Palliative care for tuberculosis patients is the need of the hour

Chennai: Tuberculosis patients suffer from a number of physical symptoms including shortness of breath, throat and chest pain, cough, haemoptysis, respiratory secretions, insomnia, anorexia-cachexia and fatigue. Being a chronic disease, it can also cause mental distress and may make the patient feel anxious. With a multi-specialty approach required for the management of TB, experts recommend palliative care for patients. In Tamil Nadu Journal of Public Health and Medical Research A research article by experts from the Cancer Institute, the Institute of Thoracic Medicine and the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis published in India states that palliative care for TB patients is the need of the hour. TB patients may experience pain for a variety of reasons. , which include chest pain, back pain due to Potts spine, headache due to TB meningitis, while TB arthritis can cause joint pain.

The primary symptom of cough can induce nausea and also loss of appetite, resulting in weight loss. Persistent cough can also disrupt sleep and increase insomnia. The article highlights that apart from physical support to TB patients, social support is also essential. Social workers can locate homeless TB patients and provide them with permanent housing. Can help provide accommodation, and coordinate transportation to ensure that patients have access to their needed TB appointments. The intervention of nutritionists is also needed as nutrition helps in timely recovery. Is. Nutritional support also plays an important role in recovery from TB.

“Patients with diabetes have a higher risk of developing tuberculosis disease from latent tuberculosis. Complete cure requires constant monitoring and good glycemic control. Diabetes, co-morbidities such as heart problems, kidney failure and liver dysfunction The burden increases and the need for palliative care,” said the article by Jefrilla Nancy and VV Meenakshi of the Cancer Institute. The article was co-authored by Vinod Kumar Vishwanathan and C from the Institute of Thoracic Medicine and National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis respectively Co-written by Padmapriyadarshini. However, the article presents various challenges to palliative care for TB patients and lack of awareness is a primary concern.

“The use of palliative care in infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, rabies, malaria and other diseases is a new area that requires development. Despite receiving training in palliative care, specific knowledge and skills in the disease are required to understand the application of tuberculosis The research article recommends that this gap be addressed by provision of community-based palliative care at the primary health care center level, and by teaching pulmonologists and respiratory therapy specialists to provide primary palliative care. It is imperative to create awareness among providers to extend palliative care even to drug-sensitive patients.