Dr. Chris Aminarh Sounds Alarm on TB’s Silent Threat in Ghana

Jephthah Nana Adjei Osei - Mensah
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Dr. Chris Aminarh Sounds Alarm on TB’s Silent Threat in Ghana
Dr. Aminarh
In a powerful and eye-opening segment on 3Music TV’s Culture Daily, Dr. Chris Aminarh, a leading public health expert, has sounded an urgent alarm on tuberculosis (TB), describing it as a “silent threat” that continues to devastate Ghanaian communities. His candid discussion shed light on the alarming reality of TB’s high mortality rate, often obscured by misdiagnosis and shrouded in stigma, calling for robust public awareness campaigns to confront this public health crisis head-on. “TB kills more people than we acknowledge, and the silence around it is deafening,” Dr. Aminarh emphasized, urging a collective effort to break the social barriers that hinder effective detection and treatment.

Dr. Aminarh highlighted a critical issue: TB’s symptoms, such as chronic cough, fever, and weight loss, are frequently mistaken for other conditions like pneumonia, leading to underreporting and delayed treatment. This misdiagnosis is particularly devastating for vulnerable populations, including children and those living with HIV, where TB contributes significantly to mortality. For instance, studies indicate that in Ghana, approximately 1–23% of pneumonia-related deaths in children under five may be linked to undiagnosed TB, underscoring the urgent need for improved diagnostic tools and awareness. Moreover, the stigma associated with TB—fueled by fear of transmission and its links to poverty and HIV/AIDS—prevents many from seeking testing or disclosing their status. In Ghana, cultural practices, such as bans on TB patients attending public gatherings, exacerbate this stigma, driving the disease underground and allowing it to spread unchecked.

While Ghana’s National TB Control Program (NTP) has made strides, achieving over 90% treatment success in some regions like Greater Accra, Dr. Aminarh argues that these gains mask deeper challenges. The persistence of social stigma, limited access to advanced diagnostics, and inadequate follow-up care for multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) threaten to undermine eradication efforts. “We cannot celebrate progress when communities are still afraid to talk about TB,” he stated. He advocates for innovative public awareness campaigns, such as “TB clubs” or community-led education programs, which have shown promise in reducing stigma and improving treatment adherence in other settings.

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