World TB Day 2007
24 March 2007
On March 24, 2007, Virginia will observe World TB Day which recognizes the global fight against tuberculosis. Support World TB Day, because TB anywhere is TB everywhere.
- TB is contagious and spreads through the air; if not treated, each person with active TB infects on average 10 to 15 people every year.
- One in 10 people infected with TB bacilli will become sick with active TB in their lifetime; people with HIV are at a much greater risk of developing the disease.
- Two billion people, equal to one third of the world’s total population, are infected with TB bacilli, the bacteria that cause TB.
- Virginia reported 332 newly diagnosed TB cases in 2006.
- TB is a worldwide pandemic; the highest rates of disease per capita are in Africa. Half of all new cases worldwide are in Asia. In Virginia, most of the cases are found in northern Virginia.
- Multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) is a form of TB that does not respond to the standard treatments using first line drugs; MDR-TB is present in virtually all countries recently surveyed by the WHO. In 2006, Virginia reported five cases of MDR-TB. These occurred throughout the Commonwealth.
- Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) occurs when resistance to second-line drugs develops; it is extremely difficult to treat, and cases have been confirmed worldwide. In 2006, Virginia did not report a case of XDR-TB.
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