adminWorld Medical Association secretary general Dr Otmar Kloiber said the application gives physicians the flexibility to access the course material at any time, even when they are discussing treatment options with their patients.
“This is a very exciting development and will enable physicians around the globe to improve their knowledge and skills in detecting and caring for MDR-TB patients without the need to plug onto the Internet,” said Dr Kloiber.
“The fact that the course is portable and can be accessed offline should be of enormous benefit particularly to physicians working in poorer parts of the world where the majority of TB cases are.”
The new application contains eight training modules which comprise the WMA’s course on MDR-TB.
It is intended as an introduction to MDR-TB management and is consistent with the principles of the WHO Stop TB Strategy.
Drug resistance can develop if basic TB control fails at any of its different stages. This could be during diagnosis or because of treatment inaccuracy, or when drug supplies are not consistent or are of poor quality.
Treatment can also fail when patients do not adhere to treatment.
In Zimbabwe, Government estimates MDR-TB cases to be around 1 000, but these cases have not yet been detected.
Only 74 cases had been detected as of 2011 up from 27 cases the previous year.
Current MDR-TB takes two years to treat and has several side effects.
According to WHO, there were an estimated 630 000 cases of MDR-TB in 2011, while drug resistant forms of TB are a neglected global health crisis.
Online Reporter