Pediatrician at Harapan Kita Children and Mother Hospital (RSAB), Jakarta, Dimas Dwi Saputro drew attention to the fact that younger the child’s age, greater the likelihood of developing tuberculosis (TB) with severe symptoms.

While speaking at a virtual discussion on Health Radio of the Ministry of Health followed from here on Thursday, Saputro said that all children have the same risk of contracting TB.

However, the likelihood of being infected with symptomatic or active TB differs in each age group.

“Those under the age of two years have a very high risk of severe TB as compared to children over the age of 2-5 years,” he remarked.

He said the risk of falling sick with TB began to fall at the age of 5-10 years. However, when the child is more than 10 years of age, the risk of TB can increase again.

“I conclude that the younger the child, the more severe the symptoms of TB can be. Meanwhile, TB with severe symptoms can affect the brain,” he pointed out.

The spread of mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria to the brain can potentially have sequelae in children with cerebral tuberculosis. It can interfere with the growth and development of children when they recover.

TB is transmitted through droplets or saliva that can spread through air. The bacteria that causes the disease can survive in air for at least 4 hours.

For cases in children, most transmission occurs from adults to children, who are around TB sufferers.

Some of the symptoms of TB in children include weight loss over a period of time, persistent or recurring fever, and persistent cough that does not get better despite medication.

Based on data from the Health Ministry, by 2021, only 50-60 percent of the TB incidence rate had been found out of the target of 969 thousand.

Hence, the Health Ministry is pushing for an increase in TB examinations to support elimination of the disease by 2030.

Source: Antara News