For a condition which can be treated, tuberculosis cases have oddly been on the rise.
It is now on the same level as HIV as the most deadly infectious disease in the world.
Tuberculosis was responsible for 1.5 million deaths in 2014. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), this number is ‘unacceptable’ for an infection with a known and proven effective method of treatment.
“Tuberculosis and HIV are now competing to be the number one cause of death from infectious disease in the world,” says a spokesperson for WHO in an interview with BBC.
Read: Tuberculosis: Do you know enough about this fatal disease?
Most new cases have been found to occur in Indonesia, China and India.
Only one out three cases have been found unresponsive to treatment.
Though the Philippines is the 8th tuberculosis-burdened country in the world, recent reports show that the country is ‘winning the battle against tuberculosis.’
The success of the decreasing number of cases in the Philippines is attributed to effective campaigns such as DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course) programs.
Since 1990, worldwide cases of tuberculosis have been reduced to more than 50%.
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