Buruli ulcer patients lose limbs for reporting late to health centre
Dr Janet Pereko, a Specialist Surgeon at the Amasaman Hospital, has said that some children who were infected with buruli ulcer in the surrounding communities had had their limbs amputated in order to save their lives because they failed to report their conditions to the health centres early.
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She said, unfortunately, most adults resorted to the use of herbal preparations for their children who were infected with the disease causing the ulcers to devlop into cancers.
Dr Pereko made this known when the Junior Graphic visited the Buruli Ulcer Centre at the Amansaman Hospital, near Accra.
She said 127 children under the age of 15 have been infected with the buruli ulcer disease since 2009.
Additionally a total of 299 cases were also recorded among the 15 years and above age group in the communities.
According to Dr Pereko, the buruli ulcer disease starts like a rash or a nodule on some parts of the body and when the rashes begin to itch and are scratched, they developed into sores known as ulcers.
She explained that when the nodule starts and there was no treatment within a month, it bursts and developed into ulcers.
Dr Pereko also stated that “if the nodule is detected and the patient reports to the hospital, a sample is taken to the laboratory at the Noguchi Research Institute at Legon, Accra, and if the results are positive the patient is admitted for further treatment.”
She said usually the treatment for the disease took two months, depending on the seriousness of the patient’s condition.
She advised parents to report to the nearest health centres whenever they detected a rash or wound anywhere on their children’s bodies for further observation.
Dr Pereko said in view of the long duration of the treatment, a school had been established by the Ghana Education Service (GES) for children suffering from buruli ulcer so that they would not miss classes.
A teacher at the school, Mr Christian Obed Adentwi, said since the children were in different classes and others did not have any formal education, they taught them on one-on-one basis.
He added that there were five teachers in the school and the GES constantly supplied them with the needed teaching and learning materials for pupils of the school.