World TB Day, Imagine a TB-free India - Times of India
Tuberculosis (TB) is as old as humans. It is at least nine thousand years old and is the third oldest disease known to humans. It is the deadliest infectious disease. And is the ninth deadliest disease today. TB is treatable. United Nations has set the goal to end the TB epidemic, that is to reduce TB deaths by 90% and TB incidence by 80%, by 2030 . But India has set the goal to eradicate TB from the country by 2025. What is TB, what is its prevalence rate, what is its treatment, and what needs to be done to eradicate it. What is TB? TB is a serious bacterial infection which can be life-threatening if not treated. Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium causes it. TB usually affects the lungs. But can also affect other organs and tissues such as lymph nodes, spine, brain and nervous system, kidneys and urinary tract, bones and joints, gastrointestinal tract, and less commonly the skin, eyes, and ears. TB usually s...