Tuberculosis: A Global Emergency

Tuberculosis (TB) is the number one single infectious disease killer, taking nearly 3 million lives per year. So great is concern about TB that in 1993, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared TB a "global emergency."

Consider These Facts

Someone is newly infected with TB every second.
TB is the leading killer of women, outranking all causes of maternal mortality.
TB creates more orphans than any other infectious disease.
TB is the leading cause of death among HIV-positive individuals.
TB is not on the decline. Between 1993 and 1996, a 13 percent increase in cases was reported. Last year recorded the most deaths from TB in history approximately 8,000 per day.
7-8 million people become infected with TB every year.
One third of the world's population is infected with TB, and 5-10 percent of these people will develop the disease.
TB accounts for more than 1/4 of all preventable adult deaths in the developing world.

TB is Preventable and Control is Cost Effective

The most important thing to note is that TB, though transmitted as easily as the common cold, is preventable. Directly Observed Treatment Shortcourse (DOTS) is an effective treatment for TB that involves at least a six-month antibiotic regimen.

DOTS and other TB treatments are among the most cost-effective health interventions.
Every dollar spent on TB prevention saves a country $3-$4 dollars.
An untreated person with active TB will infect between 10 and 15 people per year.
DOTS, though proven and cost-effective, is only used in 15 percent of TB cases worldwide.

Mismanaged and Underfunded TB Control Programs Make the Problem Worse

TB control programs, if poorly funded and organized, often do more harm than good. Inadequate TB control is a major cause of Multi-Drug Resistant TB (MDR-TB).

One case of MDR-TB may cost up to $250,000 to treat and in some cases is incurable.
As mismanaged TB control is a primary cause of drug-resistance, adequate funding for the administration of TB programs is a necessity.

In Order to Stop TB in the United States, both Local and Global Control is Necessary

In the United States, the CDC has reported a gradual decline in the number of TB cases. Yet nearly 20,000 cases of active TB still occur every year.

TB is an airborne disease that knows no geographic boundaries.
Millions of people travel between the United States and other nations daily.
Nearly 40 percent of the TB cases in the United States are in foreign-born persons.
In order to eliminate the TB problem in the United States, well-organized and funded control programs are necessary locally and globally- to stop TB at the source.

Source: Princeton Project 55, Inc. Tuberculosis Initiative
April 1999