ALBAWABA - The number of tuberculosis (TB) deaths in Europe is on the rise again after declining for almost two decades.
The World Health Organization (WHO) Europe said it was the first time in 20 years that the downward trend was broken.
The disruption of TB services during the COVID-19 pandemic may have delayed or prevented TB diagnoses, which enhanced the severity of the disease and contributed to the rise in mortality that we are seeing in 2021, according to the WHO Europe.
The number of tuberculosis deaths in Europe is on the rise again after declining for almost two decades, the World Health Organisation warned on Friday.https://t.co/yXsHpuHb6i
— News24 (@News24) March 25, 2023
TB killed 27,300 Europeans in 2021, compared with 27,000 a year earlier, according to WHO data. There were no figures available for 2022.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection, which spreads through inhaling tiny droplets from the coughs or sneezes of an infected person.
The number of tuberculosis deaths in Europe is on the rise again after declining for almost two decades, the World Health Organization warned on Friday.https://t.co/yXsHpuHb6i
— News24 (@News24) March 24, 2023
It mainly affects the lungs, but it can affect any part of the body, including the tummy (abdomen), glands, bones and nervous system.
About a quarter of the global population is estimated to have been infected with TB bacteria, but most people will not go on to develop TB disease and some will clear the infection. Those who are infected but not (yet) ill with the disease cannot transmit it.
