WHO Says TB Incidence Has Peaked

The World Health Organization reports that the global tuberculosis epidemic appears to have peaked, though U.S. officials in Atlanta are cautious.

Dr. Mario Raviglione, head of the agency’s Stop TB department, told the Los Angeles Times that a drop between 2004 and 2005 in the percentage of world population infected with the disease was the first ever. Because global population increased the number of cases went up by almost 9 million.

Incidence has peaked around the world, he said. This is fruition of all our efforts.

While tuberculosis was a major killer in industrial countries in the 19th century, in recent years the epidemic has been concentrated in Africa and Asia, the Times said. Drug-resistant strains have made treatment more difficult, and the disease often occurs in people who are HIV positive.

In 1993, when WHO declared that tuberculosis was a world health emergency more than 3 million people around the world died from the disease. In 2005, 1.6 million died of TB.

Dr. Kenneth Castro of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control warned against declaring premature victory.

The moment you relent, TB has an incredible ability to come back with a vengeance, he said.