World Health Organization: WHO reports increase in tuberculosis cases during corona pandemic

The number of cases of tuberculosis has increased as a result Corona pandemic increased significantly. This was announced by the World Health Organization (WHO) in their annual tuberculosis report. As a result, the number of illnesses rose to an estimated 10.6 million in 2022. In 2021 it was 10.3 million. By then, the number of cases had been falling for years.

The increasing numbers are due to the fact that medical tuberculosis care is increasing in the course of the Pandemic The WHO announced that it had been restricted in many countries. Losses in health care supplies led to almost half a million additional deaths from tuberculosis during the pandemic years.

Number of deaths is falling

The report of the WHO but also contains positive news: the number of identified diseases and treatments rose significantly again last year. This also affected deaths. In 2022, 1.3 million people died from the treatable infectious disease, around 100,000 fewer than in the previous year.

However, progress is too slow to achieve the internationally agreed goals in combating the disease, the WHO said. Not only the ongoing after-effects of the pandemic are responsible for this, but also current military conflicts. According to the report, deaths fell only 19 percent between 2015 and 2022, well below the 75 percent target by 2025.

Most cases in Asia and Africa

tuberculosis is one of the most common infectious diseases. The bacteria are transmitted by sick people through droplet infection, for example through coughing. The disease, which primarily affects the lungs, sometimes only breaks out years after the infection. Tuberculosis is preventable and treatable. Without treatment, around half of patients die.

Last year, 87 percent of new cases occurred in countries in Asia and Africa. The WHO assumes that only 2.2 percent of global cases occurred in Europe.