| Social status makes a difference: Tuberculosis scenerio during National Family Health Survey - 2 |
| Authors: |
Kaulagekar, A. A. Radkar |
| Source: |
Indian Journal of Tuberculosis, Vol 54, Page: 17-23 |
| Topic(s): |
Tuberculosis
Women's health
|
| Country: |
Asia
India
|
| Published: |
MAR 2007 |
| Abstract: |
The poorest of people from the poorest of
countries are the ones most affected by tuberculosis.
Not only are they more vulnerable to the disease
because of their living and working conditions, they
are also plunged deeper into poverty as a consequence
of TB. A person with TB loses, on average, 20 to 30
per cent of annual household income due to illness1.
Evidence from various researches strongly suggests
that there is a close link between TB and poverty2-5.
The link also highlights the relevance of gender issues
in the context of prevalence and treatment of TB in
developing countries6. A heavier burden of poverty
and comparatively lower socio-economic status of
women make them more vulnerable to adverse social
and environmental conditions. Relatively few studies
of gender differences in TB have generally come
from Third World countries. These studies suggest
differences in diagnosis, treatment and societal
perceptions of TB in women, usually to their
disadvantage, and reflecting their lower social status
in many societies7-9. However, Hamid and
colleagues10 found that the gender difference
observed in routine TB diagnosis is real, and is not
due to lesser accessibility of women to health
services.
Gender and TB experts have since been
working on an agenda for research into biological,
epidemiological, social and cultural differences in the
occurrence of TB in men and women and their access
to the TB treatment strategy11. It is estimated that
more than 600 million women worldwide are infected
with TB and of these an estimated 3.1 million fall ill
each year. TB kills more women annually than all
causes of maternal mortality combined. The impact
of TB on women is more intense with problems of
malnutrition, ill health, HIV infection, repeated
childbirth, fear, stigma attached to the disease. |
|