The number of tuberculosis cases and deaths in 2021 increased from the previous year as the COVID pandemic disrupted medical services globally, the World Health Organization reported.
Oct. 28, 2022 – The number of tuberculosis cases and deaths in 2021 increased from the previous year as the COVID pandemic disrupted medical services globally, the World Health Organization says.WHO’s Global TB Report 2022.
This is the first time the number of TB cases and drug-resistant TB cases has gone up in a number of years, the WHO said in a news release. TB is a contagious infection that usually attacks the lungs. After COVID-19, it’s the world’s deadliest infectious killer, the WHO says. The report noted several small gains. Preventive TB treatment for people living with HIV reached more than 10 million people from 2018 to 2021, exceeding the global target of 6 million people.