Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam is now able to treat all strains ofmulti-drug-resistant and totally drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) withshort-term treatment regimens using newly accessible drugs.

Theinformation was released by Associate Prof. Dr. Nguyen Viet Nhung, head of theNational TB Prevention Programme, during his meeting with Dr. TerezaKasaeva, Director of the WorldHealth Organisation’s (WHO) Global TB Programme, in Hanoi on July 24.

Nhung, who is also Directorof the National Lung Hospital, said the NationalTB Prevention Programme expects to admit some 3,420 patients suffering from drug-resistantTB in 2018, with another 4,050 in 2019, and 4,680 in 2020. The programme looksto cover all drug-resistant TB patients in the future in order to control thespread of the disease in the community.

The official told his guestthat new technologies, drugs, and treatment methods have been used effectivelyin TB treatment in Vietnam.

Besides this, 50 specialisedhospitals, and domestic and foreign partners have created a strong TBprevention and control network in the country, he stressed.

According to the official,Vietnam ranks 16th among the top 30 countries for total TB patients, and 13thin the rankings of drug-resistant TB patients.

There were an estimated 126,000 new TB cases and about 13,000 deaths dueto TB in Vietnam in 2017, which was down from the 16,000 deaths in 2016, said Nhung,citing from a report released by the WHO.

However, the fatality rate still remains drastically high, even whencompared to traffic accident deaths, he said, adding that around 5,500Vietnamese people catch the drug-resistant strain of TB each year.

More than 100,000 TB patients are treated each year, with over 90percent of new cases managing to beat the disease. Of note, more than 75percent of the 5,827 drug-resistant TB cases in 2017 recovered from thedisease, higher than the global rate of 52 percent, Nhung said.

For her part, Kasaeva suggested Vietnam invest more in its strategy against TB andconduct research studies and innovations in this field, expressing her hopethat Vietnam could become a pioneer in establishing a TB research network inthe region.

During their working visitto Vietnam from July 24-27, Kasaeva and her entourage are scheduled to haveworking sessions with centrally-run Vietnamese agencies on TB prevention.

They will also visit theNational Lung Hospital, the Hanoi Lung Hospital, the Hai Phong Lung and TBHospital, and several medical centres in the districts and communes of Hanoiand Hai Phong.–VNA