On October 23, the World Health Organization (WHO) released its latest global report on tuberculosis (TB) control and treatment trends. The report assesses global trends in addition to examining high-prevalence countries such as South Africa.
While mortality levels are decreasing by about 2 percent each year, nearly 3 million TB cases went undiagnosed or unreported in 2012. Missed cases present a major challenge in fighting TB. Out of the 8.6 million people worldwide with TB in 2012, 1.3 million died from the disease. An additional concern is the number of drug-resistant (MDR-TB) cases. Nearly 3.7 percent of new TB patients worldwide have drug-resistant strains. Roughly 60 percent of new MDR-TB cases in 2011- estimated to be about 500,000 - occurred in the "BRICS" countries alone (Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China, and South Africa).
The report summarizes five priority steps toward achieving global TB control and treatment goals:
· Reach missed cases;
· Address multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) as a public health crisis;
· Accelerate the response to TB/HIV;
· Increase financing to close all resource gaps; and
· Ensure rapid uptake of innovations.