Global tuberculosis (TB) Report 2024

About Global TB Report:

• It is an annual report published by the World Health Organization (WHO).
• It provides a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the TB epidemic and of progress in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease at global, regional, and country levels. 
• Highlights of the 2024 Report:
  • It shows 8.2 million people were newly diagnosed with TB in 2023, a figure that represents the highest number of TB cases recorded by the WHO since it began global TB monitoring in 1995.
  • It also marks a significant increase from the 7.5 million new TB cases reported in 2022.
  • Although the estimated number of 1.25 million TB deaths in 2023is down from the 1.32 million recorded in 2022 and continues a declining trend from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, that number still far surpasses the 320,000 COVID deaths officially reported to the WHO last year.
  • The data show that 30 mostly low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) bear 87% of the global TB burden, with five countries—India (26%), Indonesia (10%),China (6.8%), the Philippines (6.8%), and Pakistan (6.3%)—combining for 56% of the burden. 
  • 55 percent of people who developed TB were men, 33 percent were women, and 12 percent were children and young adolescents.
  • According to the report, a significant number of new TB cases are driven by five major risk factors: undernutrition, HIV infection, alcohol use disorders, smoking, and diabetes.
  • In 2023, India was estimated to have had 27 lakh TB cases, of which 25.1 lakh persons were diagnosed and put on treatment. 
  • This has buoyed India's treatment coverage to 89 percent in 2023 from 72 percent in 2015, thereby bridging the gap of missing cases.
  • It acknowledged a drop in India's TB incidence - from 237 per lakh populationin2015, to 195 per lakh population in 2023, accounting for a 17.7 percent decline.

Q1: What is Tuberculosis (TB)?

It is an infectious disease caused by bacteria that most often affects the lungs. It spreads through the air when people with TB cough, sneeze or spit. Tuberculosis is preventable and curable. About a quarter of the global population is estimated to have been infected with TB bacteria.

News: The Global TB Report 2024 by WHO acknowledged India's progress in tackling Tuberculosis