KABUL - The tuberculosis (TB) remains a serious public health threat in Afghanistan as 10,500 people lost their lives because of TB each year, Public Health Minister Dr. Suraya Dalil said on Tuesday. "Afghanistan is one of the 22 TB high-burden counties and TB is a major problem of public health in the country,"Dalil said.

Almost 53,000 new cases of active TB are discovered in Afghanistan each year and 10,500 people die because of the disease in the war-torn country, she said. "Available figures in TB information system shows Afghan women are impacted more than men as 66 percent among new infectious TB cases are female," she added.

"Last year in Afghanistan, over 670 children under the age of 15 were diagnosed with TB. The majority or 465 cases are girls," said Dr. Ahmad Shadoul, country representative of World Health Organization (WHO). "Because TB is often not considered a possible diagnosis, many children remain undetected.

Out of more than 53,000 estimated TB cases, around 10 percent are estimated as children,"Shadoul added.
He said that WHO will continue to support Afghanistan's efforts in preventing and treating the disease. (Xinhua)