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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 28 Feb 2001

Vol. 531 No. 4

Written Answers. - Control of Infectious Diseases.

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

166 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children if any screening procedures are in place to protect against possible infection from tuberculosis, with particular reference to patients in maternity and other hospitals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6242/01]

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

167 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans he has for early detection of tuberculosis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6243/01]

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

174 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of cases of tuberculosis in humans recorded in County Kildare in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6250/01]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 166, 167 and 174 together.

The Health Act, 1947, and the Infectious Diseases Regulations, 1981, provide the legislative basis for the control of infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, in Ireland. The control of infectious diseases is a matter, in the first instance, for the health boards.
Upon being notified of a case of tuberculosis, whether in a hospital setting or in the community, the relevant health board puts in place contact tracing procedures. Close contacts of cases of tuberculosis are at increased risk of tuberculosis infection and subsequent disease. Contact tracing enables contacts to be offered preventive therapy, or if necessary curative therapy, and also enables the original source of infection to be identified and treated.
With regard to the recent case of a patient in the Rotunda Hospital who was diagnosed as having tuberculosis, the Eastern Regional Health Authority has advised my Department that the mothers and babies with whom the patient had come in contact have all been identified and contacted to present for screening and treatment as appropriate.
The report of the Working Party on Tuberculosis, published in 1996, made recommendations for the prevention and treatment of the disease. The recommendations covered a range of issues including epidemiology, surveillance, screening, preventative therapy, clinical management and laboratory diagnosis. As recommended in the report, a permanent committee, the National Tuberculosis Committee, was established to advise on a detailed national strategy for the control and management of tuberculosis and it is developing such a strategy at present. It continues to keep under review all issues concerning the control and management of tuberculosis.
The development of the National Disease Surveillance Centre, established in 1998, will enable a much improved level of surveillance of infectious disease in Ireland and the centre will assist in the continued development of strategies to control communicable diseases. Tuberculosis is one of the diseases which is the subject of detailed surveillance by the National Disease Surveillance Centre in conjunction with the health boards.
A breakdown of the number of cases of tuberculosis by county is not readily available for the years 1996 and 1997. I have requested this information from the Eastern Regional Health Authority and will convey the authority's response to the Deputy when I receive it. The National Disease Surveillance Centre has indicated that the number of cases of tuberculosis in County Kildare in each of the last three years is as follows: 1998, 11; 1999, 25; 2000, 8 (Provisional).

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

168 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of cases of tuberculosis in each of the past ten years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6244/01]

The number of cases of tuberculosis reported in each of the past ten years is as follows: 1991, 640; 1992, 604; 1993, 598; 1994, 524; 1995, 458; 1996, 434; 1997, 416; 1998, 424; 1999, 469*; 2000, 416 (Provisional).

*The figure for 1999 has recently been revised upwards by 12 additional cases by the National Disease Surveillance Centre following receipt of additional cases from the Western Health Board.

The Health Act, 1947, and the Infectious Diseases Regulations, 1981, provide the legislative basis for the control of infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, in Ireland. The control of infectious diseases is a matter, in the first instance, for the health boards.

The report of the Working Party on Tuberculosis, which had been established to evaluate policy on the prevention and treatment of the disease in Ireland and to make appropriate recommendations, was published in 1996. The report made recommendations for the prevention and treatment of the disease. The recommendations covered a range of issues including epidemiology, surveillance, screening, preventative therapy, clinical management and laboratory diagnosis. As recommended in the report, a permanent committee, the National Tuberculosis Committee, was established to advise on a detailed national strategy for the control and management of tuberculosis and it is developing such a strategy at present. It continues to keep under review all issues concerning the control and management of tuberculosis.

The development of the National Disease Surveillance Centre, which was established in 1998, will enable a much improved level of surveillance of infectious disease in Ireland and the centre will assist in the continued development of strategies to control communicable diseases. Tuberculosis is one of the priority communicable diseases under surveillance by the National Disease Surveillance Centre at present. In January 2000 the National Disease Surveillance Centre produced a report on the epidemiology of tuberculosis in Ireland. This was the first time that national data describing in detail the epidemiology of tuberculosis had been presented. The National Disease Surveil lance Centre will shortly produce a national TB report in respect of 1999. The detailed surveillance being undertaken by the National Disease Surveillance Centre in relation to tuberculosis will enable strategies to combat the disease to be optimised through monitoring and feedback of information about trends in incidence, identification of high risk groups-risk factors, prompt recognition of and investigation of incidents and clusters of cases, monitoring of the effectiveness of tuberculosis treatment nationally, morbidity and transmission of infection to be minimised by early diagnosis and effective treatment, the reduction of avoidable mortality and prevent the emergence of drug-resistant tuberculosis.
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