WHO has reported that about 8.2 million individuals were newly diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) in 2023, a significant increase from 7.5 million cases in 2022, marking the highest number of cases reported since 1995. This surge made TB the leading infectious disease killer in 2023, surpassing COVID-19. However, TB-related deaths reduced from 1.32 million in 2022 to 1.25 million in 2023. Over half of global TB cases (56%) were reported in India (26%), Indonesia (10%), the Philippines (6.8%), China (6.8%), and Pakistan (6.3%).
Men (55%) were affected more by TB than women (33%) and children (12%). Alarmingly, about 400,000 individuals contracted multidrug-resistant or rifampicin-resistant TB, and only 44% of them were diagnosed and treated in 2023. Undernutrition, alcohol use disorders, HIV, smoking, and diabetes are the major risk factors for TB. However, efforts to prevent and treat TB…
