TB under control, says public health director

A Puvirnituq patient under treatment for tuberculosis is now in a Montreal hospital.

That’s because the patient, who could still spread TB, was having problems remaining in her residence until she was no longer contagious.

“We tried to treat the person at home, but we heard that the person did not respect the quarantine. We explained that we had a room in a hospital in Montreal. The patient could either respect the quarantine condition, or could be in Montreal in an isolation room until the period of contagion had passed,” said Dr. Serge Déry, the director of public health for Nunavik.

The Inuulitsivik Hospital in Puvirnituq has no isolation room or area for contagious patients, although one is due to be constructed this summer.

The treatment period for TB is six months, but those affected with TB usually become contagion-free after two weeks to a month, depending on the case.

This is Nunavik’s first case of TB this year. In 2003, there were none and in 2002, only two cases. Due to a drop in cases, Nunavik is now considering a halt to vaccinating all newborns against TB.

“We have a much better situation than Nunavut. We know that all cases and their contacts are very well followed by the health network. Treatment is followed, contacts are identified and tested,” Déry said.