For the first time in more than twenty years, new cases of tuberculosis increased last year in the world, driven by Covid and its confinements that limited detection and access to care, the WHO worried this Thursday.
“Unfortunately we saw last year for the first time in more than two decades an increase in the number of people developing the disease as well as its drug-resistant form,” said Tereza Kasaeva, director of WHO’s Global Tuberculosis Programme. the presentation of the annual report.
Decline between 2005 and 2019
The incidence rate (new cases per 100,000 people per year) increased 3.6% between 2020 and 2021, after falling about 2% annually for most of the last two decades.
After falling between 2005 and 2019, the number of deaths from tuberculosis rose to 1.6 million last year, returning to the level of 2017. That is an increase of more than 14% compared to 2019, when this disease had killed 1.4 million people (1.5 million in 2020).
Most of the estimated increase in deaths was recorded last year in four countries: India, Indonesia, Burma and the Philippines.
Strong impact of Covid
The Covid pandemic has significantly slowed progress in the fight against tuberculosis and jeopardizes the WHO’s goals of reducing deaths from the disease by 90% and the incidence rate by 80% by 2030, compared to 2015.
But “if the pandemic has taught us anything, it is that solidarity, determination, innovation and the fair use of tools will allow us to overcome serious threats to health. Let’s apply these lessons to the fight against tuberculosis”, said the director general WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom. Ghebreyesus said in the report.
Source: BFM TV
