Tuberculosis remains the world's deadliest infectious disease, despite the fact that deaths from it have decreased. This is reported in a report by the World Health Organization (WHO).
According to experts, since 2000, about 54 million deaths from this disease have been prevented, but states are still not doing enough to combat it. It is noted that in 2017, 10 million people were infected with tuberculosis, 1.6 million died from it.
Doctors again urged countries to remember their national and international commitments. Their leaders, the WHO stressed, can build on recent steps taken in India, Russia, Rwanda and South Africa.
One of the problems, experts have called a resistant form of tuberculosis, in which the infection does not respond to rifampicin, the main drug against the disease. In addition, in many states, sufficient funds are not allocated to fight the disease. In 2018, WHO estimates that $ 3.5 billion is needed to fund TB programs, and this amount could double by 2022.
Tuberculosis is one of the most widespread diseases in the world. With its open form, microbacteria are found in the patient's secretions, and the person becomes infectious. Some scientists believe that about a third of the world's population is infected with tuberculosis pathogens.