Tuberculosis Is Now Considered Worldwide Health Risk

Added by Kimberly Ruble on March 20, 2014.
Saved under Health, Kimberley Ruble
Tags: tuberculosis

The World Health Organization has stated that multi-drug resistant tuberculosis is a now a worldwide health security risk. The agency announced that because of poor identification of TB, about three million people have not gotten the treatment they desperately need to be able to fight the disease.

Tuberculosis is caused by a germ called Myco-bacterium tuberculosis. When it poisons the body, the bacteria usually attacks the lungs at first but it can also attack other parts of the body. When TB is left untreated, it most usually leads to death. In 2012, the superbug TB strains caused over half a million people to fall ill and only a quarter of those individuals receiving proper diagnosis and then getting treated. All of the other infected people either received the incorrect type of medical care or failed to get any type of treatment at all.

WHO explained that by giving out the erroneous type of treatments is what has caused the growth of multi-drug resilient TB. When strains that are resistant to drugs begin spreading all over the world, the death rate will start to go up until scientists are able to find a better way of treating such superbug varieties.

Margaret Chan, a general director of WHO, stated it was essential for there to be both faster and also earlier diagnosis of all forms of tuberculosis so to help improve the likelihood of individuals receiving the proper treatment and then going on to being cured. The correct diagnosis is one of the main steps in stopping the spread of TB that is resistant to drugs.

It was only in 2013 that the global agency declared that multi-drug resilient tuberculosis needs to be officially called a public health emergency. WHO stated that by the year 2015 that there could be nearly two million people who have become infected with the multi-drug hardy TB.

At the present time there are numerous worldwide projects going on, such as Expanding Access to New Diagnostics for TB. It has been formed in order to help aid the dire tuberculosis circumstances. EXPAND-TB, which is getting monetary funds from various other world groups, is helping by bringing brand new diagnostic tools into both middle and also low income nations that are suffering from higher than usual infection rates of tuberculosis.

Mario Raviglione, one of the directors of WHO’s international TB program, explained that the breach in access to tuberculosis diagnostics and care is still far from being filled, but it is starting to close up. She added that with increased ability of people to get to the medical sites and also having the centers placed in the needed areas means that more people will be reached and hopefully treated and cured. With all the enhanced efforts, hopefully the fight against multi-drug resilient TB will be able to move along quickly.

The World Health Organization has let it be known that multi-drug hardy tuberculosis is a now a worldwide health security risk. The agency announced that because of poor identification of TB, about three million people have not gotten the treatment they desperately need to be able to fight the disease.

By Kimberly Ruble