India has the highest tuberculosis (TB) burden and the third highest human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) burden country in the world. According to sources, people who are suffering from HIV have a 26 to 31 times higher risk of developing tuberculosis, making it the most common opportunistic infection (OI) in HIV-infected individuals. In addition, HIV infection is a significant risk factor for acquiring a TB infection.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
As described by Mayo Clinic, HIV is a sexually transmitted infection. It can also be spread by contact with infected blood or from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. Without medication, it may take years before HIV weakens your immune system to the point that you have AIDS. There's no cure for HIV/AIDS, but there are medications that can dramatically slow the progression of the disease.
Tuberculosis (TB)
As per Medline Plus, TB is a disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacteria usually attack the lungs, but they can also damage other parts of the body. TB spreads through the air when a person with TB of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes, or talks. If you have been exposed, you should go to your doctor for tests. You are more likely to get TB if you have a weak immune system.
People With HIV Have Higher Risk To Have Tuberculosis And Other Cancers
National and international studies indicate that an integrated approach to TB and HIV services can be extremely effective in managing this dual menace, according to Huffington Post. In fact, the government of India's Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) and the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) jointly implement HIV/TB activities based on a National Framework for HIV/TB.
The HIV targets the immune system and weakens an individual's defense systems against infections, including TB, and some types of cancer, as reported by Zee News. Here's why HIV and TB are so closely connected and that their relationship is often termed as a co-epidemic:
- At least one-third of the HIV-positive people in the world have tuberculosis and half of AIDS patients die from TB .
- In the last 15 years, the number of new TB cases has more than doubled in countries where HIV infections are high.
- HIV leads to TB, whereas tuberculosis is an infectious disease that is spread from person to person through the air.
- HIV is transmitted sexually or through contact with a contaminated person's bodily fluids, whereas TB is not.
Although the overall HIV infection trends indicate a declining epidemic at the national level, regional variations continue to persist with some new pockets emerging. This is because, according to NACO, the "vulnerabilities that drive the epidemic are different in different parts of the area."
