Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection caused by a germ called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacteria usually attack the lungs, but they can also damage other parts of the body. TB spreads through the air when a person with TB of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes or talks. If you think you have been exposed, you should go to your doctor for tests as soon as possible. You are more likely to get TB if you have a weak immune system.

What is Tuberculosis?

Tuberculosis (TB) is a dreaded bacterial infection. It has been known to mankind since ancient ages. It was commonly called “consumption” at the turn of the last century because of the way the disease seemed to “consume” the individual it affected.

How Has The COVID-19 Pandemic Affected Tuberculosis Eradication?

Tuberculosis Causes

Tuberculosis Diagnosis

Tuberculosis Prevention

Tuberculosis Screening

Tuberculosis Treatment

Tuberculosis Prognosis

History of Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis in Animals

Tuberculosis Transmission

New tuberculosis technologies: importance of access in the private health sector

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What is the END TB Strategy?

Latest Tuberculosis News and Research

Pandemic disruptions linked to lower TB diagnoses in prisons worldwide

A new study found that reported diagnoses for tuberculosis were consistently lower than expected throughout the pandemic, even though incarceration rates remained largely consistent and TB detection among the general population managed to reverse after an early-pandemic decline.

1 Apr 2025

NIH funds research to develop a game-changing HIV diagnostic tool

As of the end of 2023, nearly 40 million people worldwide were living with HIV, including approximately 1.2 million in the United States.

1 Apr 2025

New MIT method promises less painful drug injections with tiny crystals

MIT engineers have devised a new way to deliver certain drugs in higher doses with less pain, by injecting them as a suspension of tiny crystals.

24 Mar 2025

Tuberculosis cases continue to rise in Europe

New data published by ECDC and the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe show that with almost 39,000 reported tuberculosis cases in 2023, the 29 European Union and European Economic Area (EU/ EEA) countries continue to see increases in TB notifications.

24 Mar 2025

Four breakthrough studies could revolutionize tuberculosis treatment

As of early 2025, tuberculosis cases are increasing in the U.S. This disease, often shortened to TB, causes significant lung damage and, if not treated, is almost always lethal.

22 Mar 2025

WHO urges immediate investment of resources to maintain tuberculosis care

On the occasion on World Tuberculosis (TB) Day, marked on 24 March, the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling for an urgent investment of resources to protect and maintain tuberculosis (TB) care and support services for people in need across regions and countries.

21 Mar 2025

Adding curcumin boosts the efficacy of bedaquiline in combating M. abscessus infections

Mycobacterium abscessus is a fast-growing, pathogenic mycobacteria that can cause lung infections, and people who have respiratory conditions or are immunocompromised face a higher risk. It can also cause skin infections.

18 Mar 2025

Over 40,000 new gut microbes discovered in African populations

More than 40,000 previously unknown gut microbes in African populations could completely change how medicines work for millions of people, according to scientists.

14 Mar 2025

Study finds no link between Medicaid expansion and opioid misuse

A new study has found that extending state Medicaid coverage did not increase the likelihood of prescription opioid or benzodiazepine misuse among people who use drugs.

11 Mar 2025

Study reveals genes critical for tuberculosis survival during transmission

Tuberculosis bacteria rely on a family of genes that help them survive the challenging journey from one person's lungs to another person's during coughing, sneezing or talking, according to researchers from Weill Cornell Medicine and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

10 Mar 2025

CDC firings undermine public health work far beyond Washington

The Trump administration’s sudden firing of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention employees gutted training programs across the nation whose participants bolstered the workforce of state and local public health departments that for decades have been starved of resources.

5 Mar 2025

Global study sheds light on differences in medicine taste sensitivity

Many medicines taste so bitter that some people avoid taking them. To help with the bad taste, flavors and sweeteners are added to modify the taste and make it more acceptable.

4 Mar 2025

Understanding the impact of SLC transporters on liver disease progression

Hepatic steatosis, often triggered by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a leading cause of liver dysfunction globally, affecting approximately 30% of the population.

28 Feb 2025

Randomized clinical food trials: Best clinical practice, quality management & data processing

The evolution of food clinical trials highlights the importance of quality management and ICH-GCP adherence in validating health claims and interventions.

From Atlantia Clinical Trials 28 Feb 2025

WHO Director-General issues revised recommendations on mpox emergency

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), following the third meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox 2024, held on 25 February 2025, from 12:00 to 17:00 CET, concurs with its advice that the event continues to meet the criteria of a public health emergency of international concern and, considering the advice of the Committee, he is hereby issuing a revised set of temporary recommendations.

27 Feb 2025