The Cure to Tuberculosis May Be in the Palm of Your Hand

     A recent news article was posted on FoxNews.com titled “How Smartphones Have Become a Powerful Tuberculosis Treatment Tool.” This article was written by Rose Stuckey Kirk on January 1, 2014. A study was done by The University of California San Diego on the effectiveness cost effectiveness of using videos from smartphones to document patients taking their medication for Tuberculosis. The idea is that instead of using the costly DOT (directly observed therapy) method to ensure that patients are taking their medication that, instead, patients can take a video on their smartphone of them taking it and send it in to health departments. This new method will be called VDOT (video directly observed therapy). These new observations methods were created because patients found it too difficult to comply with the multi-drug treatment so they would stop taking their medication too early in treatment. This created a more resistant form of Tuberculosis called MDR-TB. The article described new method as a, “21st century solution to an age old disease that is among the deadliest of pandemics, we can catalyze greater interest within health care systems for exploring new and powerful ways that mobile technology can improve care, reduce costs and save lives.” By using this new, modern, method of monitoring patients it can cure and prevent further spread of Tuberculosis. 

    This evolution in observing treatment is just another example of the treatment of a disease changing with the modernization of the world around and changing treatment to become more effective. This is true of any treatment of a disease, with time, and more technological advances the treatment will change and evolve. One (more extreme) specific example of the treatment of a disease’s treatment is the evolution of the treatment of the bubonic plague. In the 1300’s if someone had the plague they would be quarantined in their home to prevent the spread. But now, in the 21^st century, we have made tremendous strides in the treatment of the bubonic plague due to the modernization of medicine. We now know that it can be treated simply with an antibiotic. This is a more extreme example but it does show that over time treatments and methods are bound to change, and for the better.

   This article was very interesting to me and showed me a different part of medical treatment that I never really considered. I had honestly never thought that patients would withdraw from treatment before it should be over, thus creating a more resistant form of it. I think that monitoring their treatment and making sure that patients are taking it is a great way of keeping them on track with their treatment. I know, from person experience, that sometimes patients must have help with taking their medication. My great grandparents have lots of medication that they have to take throughout the day but if they were on their own they wouldn’t take it or take the wrong amount. Because of this they have professionals there to help administer them their medication. I like the idea of monitoring patients through their smartphones but I question the reliability of it. Patients could send the same video twice, they could forget to take the video altogether, or they may be in public and not want to videotape themselves taking medicine. But, just like all things. I’m sure that over time the kinks will be worked out of this new method.

Article: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/01/01/how-smartphones-have-become-surprising-tuberculosis-treatment-tool/