Rising multi-drug-resistant TB threatens to hit medical progress

INDIA IS AMONG THE SIX COUNTRIES THAT ACCOUNT FOR 60% OF THE TOTAL TB CASES GLOBALLY, ACCORDING TO A LANCET STUDY

Rise of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis threatens to derail the progress made by nations, including India which was among the three countries that accounted for half of over four lakh such cases globally last year.

India is also among the six countries that account for 60% of the total TB cases globally, a study published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine said.

In 2015, there were an estimated 4.8 lakh cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) globally, with approximately half of these cases being in India, China, and Russia, the study said.

“But, migration and travel mean that drug-resistant TB strains have emerged in almost every parts of the world,” it said, adding, “New antibiotics are becoming available for the first time. But without accurate diagnostics, clear treatment guidelines and improved control efforts, their effectiveness could be rapidly lost.”

“The rise of multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis threatens to derail decades of progress in controlling the disease,” the new study said.

The study comes ahead of World Tuberculosis Day on March 24.

Tuberculosis kills more people each year than any other infectious disease, including HIV/AIDS.

In 2015, tuberculosis was estimated to have killed 1.8 million people and six countries — India, Indonesia, China, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa — account for 60 per cent of the total number of cases of tuberculosis worldwide, the study said.

“Tuberculosis exists on an epic scale in India and cases of multidrug-resistant TB are an increasing concern. Access to drugs to treat tuberculosis, including drug resistant TB is a major concern,” co-author of the study, Zarir Udwadia from Hinduja Hospital and Research Center in Mumbai, said.