World TB Day

World TB Day, held on March 24 each year, is an occasion for people around the world to raise awareness about the devastating health and economic consequences of tuberculosis (TB) and to elicit support for TB prevention and control activities.

In 2022, 22 Minnesota counties reported a total of 132 new cases of active TB disease, compared to 134 in 2021. Although the number of TB cases has declined during the COVID-19 pandemic, we must continue to be vigilant against TB. Both diseases can spread through the air, so COVID-19 prevention efforts may have also prevented new cases of TB earlier in the pandemic. But the decline in TB cases may also be due to delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis of TB, as resources were shifted to fighting COVID-19. TB is not an illness from the past. It continues to be one of the deadliest diseases globally. TB can be cured with proper medical care, yet it still kills over 1.6 million people every year, including around 600 in the United States. Drug resistance to TB medications continues to be a concern.

The number of active TB cases is only the tip of the iceberg. For every person with active TB, dozens more have latent TB infection (LTBI). Overall, 5-10% of them will develop active TB unless they receive treatment for LTBI. In addition to treating people with active TB, we must promote screening and treatment of persons at greatest risk of developing active disease.

• TB Basics
  General information about TB.
   
• MDH TB Prevention and Control Program
  Program activities, objectives, and contact information.
   
• TB Statistics
  TB data and analysis of TB trends in Minnesota.
   
• World TB Day 2023
  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Tuberculosis Elimination (DTBE) World TB Day site.
   
• World TB Day 2023
  World Health Organization's World TB Day site.