300+ cases of killer TB in SA
2006-11-23 18:38
Johannesburg - A total of 303 cases of extreme drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) have been confirmed across South Africa, said the national health department on Thursday.
This form of TB was first identified in South Africa at Tugela Ferry in KwaZulu-Natal earlier this year and showed high mortality rates, with 52 of the first 53 patients dying.
The disease is complicated by the presence of HIV/Aids.
The department recorded 263 cases in KwaZulu-Natal, 10 cases each in the Eastern Cape and North West, nine in Gauteng, six in the Free State, three in Limpopo and two in the Northern Cape.
None were reported in Mpumalanga or the Western Cape.
The statistics were released by the department's head of TB, Dr Lindiwe Mvusi.
The World Health Organisation has defined XDR-TB as tuberculsis that is resistant to the main first-line TB drugs and to three or more of the six second-line drugs.
- SAPA