艾滋病和結核病協同治療更有效

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that patients who receive integrated treatment for tuberculosis and HIV-AIDS have a far greater chance of surviving these diseases. A six-year study finds more than 900,000 lives were saved globally by following TB/HIV integrated treatment programs.

世界衛生組織報告指出，接受結核病和艾滋病協同治療的患者存活機率比較高。一個長達6年的研究發現，這種協同治療項目拯救了全球超過90萬人。

The six-year study has proven to be so successful that WHO is urging governments and health facilities to follow joint prevention, diagnosis and treatment programs for TB and HIV.

這份爲期6年的研究證明了協同治療的成功，使得世衛組織敦促各國政府和醫療機構進行結核病和艾滋病的聯合預防、診斷和治療項目。

The WHO's director of the Stop TB Department, Dr. Mario Raviglione, explains HIV and tuberculosis are refereed to as dual epidemics because they are so closely linked.

世衛組織“終止結核病”部門主任拉維吉利奧解釋，艾滋病和結核病因爲密切相關所以被稱爲雙流行病。

“HIV affects the immune system and increases, therefore, the likelihood of people acquiring TB infection and then developing TB disease.… TB is one of the leading causes of death in HIV-infected people. We estimate around 350,000 people dying of HIV-related TB per year… and TB, therefore, is considered responsible for one out of four AIDS-related deaths," Raviglione said.

拉維吉利奧說：“艾滋病毒影響免疫系統，所以增加了人們被結核病毒感染，然後進一步衍生爲結核病的可能。結核病是艾滋病患者的頭號死因之一。我們估計每年大約35萬人死於和艾滋病有關的結核病，所以四分之一的艾滋病死亡案例被認定是結核病造成的。”

Raviglione says it makes sense to coordinate the treatment and prevention programs for HIV and TB. And, that is what happened between 2004 and 2010.

拉維吉利奧說，協同進行艾滋病和結核病的治療和預防項目是有道理的，而這就是2004年到2010年間他們在做的。

In 2004, WHO published a new guide urging closer collaboration between TB and HIV-treatment activities. Many governments began implementing this policy in 2005 with astonishing results.

在2004年，世衛組織公佈了一份新指導方針，敦促將結核病和艾滋病的醫療活動作更緊密的合作。許多政府在2005年開始執行這項政策，結果有了驚人的效果。

WHO says the number of people living with HIV who were screened for TB increased almost 12-fold, from nearly 200,000 in 2005 to over 2.3 million people in 2010. Testing for HIV among TB patients surged from 470,000 to over 2.2 million, a five-fold increase during that same period.

世衛組織表示，篩檢結核病的艾滋病患者增加了將近12倍，從2005年將近20萬人到2010年230多萬人。去篩檢艾滋病毒的結核病患者則從47萬人增加到220多萬人，大約是5倍。

Dr. Raviglione says the most striking progress has been made in Africa.

拉維吉利奧博士說，最驚人的結果發生在非洲。“The number of countries…testing for HIV rose from five countries only in 2005 to 31 in 2010, including all of the highest burden countries when it comes to the TB-HIV co-epidemic. Also…more than 60 percent of the estimated people living with HIV who developed active tuberculosis were identified and treated for tuberculosis in 2010. So, these are quite remarkable public health and clinical results,” Raviglione said.

他說：“檢查艾滋病毒的國家從2005年5國增加到2010年31國，包括了結核病和艾滋病共同流行的所有高流行率國家。同時在2010年，在原來患有艾滋病毒、之後感染上結核病的人當中，有超過60%被確診和獲得治療。所以，這些都是非凡的公共衛生和臨牀結果。”

As a consequence, Dr. Raviglione says nearly one million lives were saved. He says these people would have died without the application and implementation of these interventions.

拉維吉利奧博士說，有將近1百萬人因此活了下來。他說，如果沒有執行這些醫療介入措施，這些人會喪命。

There are three main elements in WHO’s updated guidance policy. The U.N. health agency says TB patients, their partners or family members should be routinely tested for HIV.

世衛組織最新的指導政策有3個重點。這個聯合國衛生機構說，結核病患者、他們的伴侶或者家人都應該定期接受艾滋病毒檢測。

It says all TB patients who are infected with HIV should be given cost-effective medicine to prevent against lung or other infections. And it recommends all TB patients with HIV start on anti-retroviral therapy within the first two weeks in which they start anti-TB treatment.

世衛組織說，應該向所有感染艾滋病毒的結核病患者提供便宜的藥物以預防肺部或其他部位的感染。世衛組織同時建議所有感染艾滋病毒的結核病患者，在開始治療結核病的頭兩週之內要接受抗逆轉錄病毒治療。

WHO stresses these services should be provided in an integrated manner at the same time and place.

世衛組織強調，這些醫療服務應該在同一個地點同一個時間協調運作。