INFECTIONS WITH TUBERCULOSIS IN KUWAIT REDUCED TO 19 OCCURRENCES PER 100,000 PEOPLE IN 2020

  • 25/03/2022

Kuwait City: Dr. Awatef Al-Shammari, Director of the Ministry of Health's Tuberculosis Control Unit, said the ministry's efforts to combat tuberculosis resulted in a decrease in the number of registered cases and infected people, from 350 tuberculosis cases per 100,000 population in 1965 to 19 per 100,000 in 2020. 


Al-Shammari noted that the ministry made enormous efforts to combat this disease, which resulted in a noticeable decline in annual infection rates in Kuwait, during a speech delivered on Thursday at Al-Saqr Specialized Center on the occasion of World Tuberculosis Day. She stated that the number of tuberculosis cases worldwide reached roughly 10 million in 2020, with 1.5 million fatalities, stating that the Corona pandemic contributed to the surge in infections. She noted that, as part of updated plans and strategies, a ministerial decision was taken last year to change the Precautions against Communicable Diseases Law No. 8 of 1969 to categorise pulmonary tuberculosis as a quarantine disease. She stated that contact examination services have been expanded, and a new tuberculosis control clinic has been established at Ali Sabah Al Salem Health Center to serve Ahmadi health district auditors. The clinic is equipped with a modern digital X-ray device to provide early detection services for tuberculosis, as well as all other diagnostic services. 

"We picked this year for the activity in Al-Saqr Health Center to highlight the work of the TB control clinic and the available examination services, including chest x-rays and tuberculin skin tests, with the participation of various parties," Al-Shammari explained. Dr. Abeer Al-Bahouh, Director of the Ministry's Health Promotion Department, said that between 2015 and 2020, the cumulative decrease in tuberculosis rates per 100,000 people was 11%, compared to the main milestone for 2020 in the strategy to eliminate tuberculosis, which is to reduce those rates by 20%. 

According to the survey, global tuberculosis fatalities increased from 1.4 million to 1.5 million cases between 2019 and 2020, reversing previous progress. She explained that this increase "is the annual increase in the number of deaths recorded since 2005 and is attributed to the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic," noting that the rate of decrease in the number of deaths was only 9.2%, rather than the 35% specified as a major target between 2015 and 2020.

Related News

MoI Cracks Down on Illegal U-Turns
  • 11/02/2025
Discounts Don't Affect Return/Exchange Rights
  • 08/02/2025
Kuwait Arrests Reckless Driver After Viral Wedding Video
  • 08/02/2025
Shifa Al Jazeera Medical Group to Host Shifa Excellence Awar ...
  • 08/02/2025
Kuwait Bans Water Pistols and Balloons
  • 07/02/2025
Kuwait Tops Global Hunger Index 2024 as Least Hungry Country
  • 04/02/2025
MoI: Implementation of new traffic fines on April 22
  • 04/02/2025
Kuwait Council of Ministers Holds Weekly Meeting at Bayan Pa ...
  • 04/02/2025
Kuwait population increases every 5 minutes
  • 03/02/2025
Kuwait Stabilizes Market Ahead of Ramadan
  • 29/01/2025
Kuwait Arrests Egyptian Expat for Forging Medical Documents
  • 29/01/2025
Kuwait Ministry of Education Cuts School Bag Weight by 50%
  • 27/01/2025