Around 10 million people developed tuberculosis (TB) in 2019. TB is the leading cause of death by an infectious disease globally, causing 1.4 million deaths last year – although in 2020 deaths due to Covid-19 will likely surpass deaths caused by TB.
While there are many factors contributing to the high rates of TB disease and deaths, failing to diagnose many people living with TB and provide them with appropriate treatment is a key contributor to the spread of TB and the high number of deaths.
“Without early and accurate diagnosis and rapid linkage to care, TB continues to spread in households and communities, and people with TB are put at greater risk of morbidity and mortality from the disease,” writes David Branigan of the NGO Treatment Action Group (TAG) in the organisation’s recently published
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Catherine Tomlinson Share According to the WHO’s report, chest X-ray screening is more effective at detecting TB than the traditionally used four-symptom screen
About 10 million people developed TB last year.
It is the leading cause of death by an infectious disease globally, causing 1.4 million fatalities last year – although deaths due to the Covid-19 coronavirus will most likely surpass deaths from TB this year.
While there are many factors that contribute to the high rates of TB infections and deaths, failing to diagnose many people living with TB and provide them with appropriate treatment is a key contributor to both the spread of TB and the high number of deaths.