Local TB cases up in Arizona and Sonora children
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December 14, 2008 - 7:08 PM
BY GEOVANA RUANO, BAJO EL SOL
SAN LUIS RIO COLORADO, Son. - Members of the Binational Health and Environment Council are concerned about the increase of tuberculosis (TB) cases among children on both sides of the border.
That concern was expressed by Dr. Jose L. Munoz, co-chair of the council, and Yuma County state Sen. Amanda Aguirre and president of the Regional Center for Border Health (RCBH), during the 15th Binational Symposium on Tuberculosis held in this city last week.

The senator reported that the incidence of tuberculosis in children has been on the rise in Arizona, primarily in Hispanic children who emigrated from Mexico. She indicated that currently in Yuma, the rate of TB cases is 10 times higher than the national rate, a situation that has them very worried.
She added that among actions taken to cut the chain of tuberculosis infection in the community and to alleviate the suffering of those who already have TB, is keeping a very close collaboration with Sonora and San Luis Rio Colorado to trace contacts and families of those who migrate in both directions.

"We have a sister community because we have family on both sides and we want to continue with education, with the detection of persons with TB and start treatment as soon as it can possible," said Aguirre, who 15 years ago introduced the proposal for TB control on this border and opened the symposium.

Dr. Munoz stressed the importance to raise awareness in the population about the existence of the disease: "Many people think tuberculosis is gone, but the truth is that it is increasing in children."

Aguirre added that the biggest problem is self-medication given by mothers to their children when they cough, which makes drug-resistant bacteria.

The event that brought together the medical community on both sides of the border also involved San Luis General Hospital director, Marco Antonio Ramirez Wakamatzu, which has detected 75 percent of all registered cases in Sonora.

The doctor said there are many cases of tuberculosis in the city and that it is important to work together because on the national level, Baja California is No. 1 in number of cases.

He stressed that TB is a curable disease, that the municipality is working with about 40 cases (between new and old) each year and that the disease is linked to social, cultural and economic factors that often involve drug addiction, alcoholism, malnutrition and social isolation.

Cristian Miguel Tapia Flores, coordinator of the Program in Sonora Microbacteriosis, reported that in 2007, Sonora reported 727 TB cases and that in 2006 the disease caused the deaths of 67 Sonoran residents.

He noted that so far the state has lost the battle against the disease in eight patients resistant to traditional drug therapy and that another seven patients with drug resistance are still alive.

Unfortunately, he acknowledged, in Mexico there is no access to second-stage drugs to curb the disease and it is very difficult to obtain them. However, he said that thanks to the binational agreement, Arizona supplies those second-stage treatments.

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