TB incidence very high in Belarus’ prisons – doctor

March 19, Pozirk. A very high incidence of tuberculosis (TB) is recorded in Belarusian prisons, Alaksandar Babčonak, deputy head of the National Center for Pulmonology and Tuberculosis, has told journalists.

Belarus had the second largest prison population in Europe in 2021, according to World Prison Brief. More recent data is not available in the public domain.

People with weakened immune systems are at increased risk of developing TB while those infected with HIV are more likely to develop the active form of the disease, he noted.

At the same time, Babčonak cited “a significant improvement” in combatting TB in general as the incidence rates have fallen over the past decade.

The trend persists as the number of TB patients dropped from 1,538 in early 2023 to 1,094 at the start of this year, he added.

The lowest incidence was recorded in Minsk with 8.3 people per 100,000 and the highest in Homiel region, 23.7 per 100,000.

In 2024, 88 people died from TB in Belarus.

Since 2015, Belarus has been using multidrug-resistant tuberculosis treatment protocols with new and repurposed anti-TB drugs such as Bedaquiline, Delamanid, and Clofazimine.

In 2022, opposition activist Pavieł Vinahradaŭ diagnosed with TB was transferred to Penal Colony No 12 in Orša, Vitsebsk region, where such patients are treated.

In February 2023 reports said he was cured.