A new report released by the World Health Organization reveals that while the number of tuberculosis cases across the world are "leveling off", there is a danger of increased number of cases in the future with the emergence of drug-resistant TB strains.
According to the WHO, though the number of TB cases has increased, it is in line with the global population growth. Figures released by the agency show that the number of TB cases increased to 8.79 million in 2005 compared to 8.71 million in the previous year. More than 80 percent of the TB cases could be found in Asia and sub Saharan Africa regions.
Mario Raviglione, head of the WHO's Stop TB programme, said that while the small increase in the TB cases is not worrying, new drug-resistant strains of the disease could lead to a spike in the number.
"Multi-drug resistant TB, which is resistant to the first-line drugs, is at alarming levels in the former Soviet Union and in parts of China. Still worse is the appearance of extensively drug resistant TB, which is a form of TB also resistant to second-line drugs", he said.
Raviglione added that the number of EDR-TB cases has been slowly increasing across the world and a new drug to combat the strains i yet to be developed. "Essentially, we are left with very few options to treat the patients. EDR-TB has been documented so far in 35 countries worldwide, including some G8 countries", he said.
Raviglione also praised the agency's Stop TB Strategy, known as DOTS. He said that the number of deaths due to the disease has actually come down in countries who have adopted this method of treatment. So far over 26 million TB patients have been placed on the program.
