Hey, Guys, Tuberculosis is Back!

Tuckerfan · Apr 5, 2024

Consumption, consumption, how's your lung function?

Tuberculosis Is Making a Comeback in the U.S.

Tuberculosis has likely reclaimed its spot as the world’s deadliest infectious disease. A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that cases of TB, a bacterial infection, once again rose in the U.S. in 2023, reaching a toll not seen for a decade. While its incidence remains low in the U.S., TB has recently become more common across the globe.

The latest status update on TB came last week in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. In 2023, there were 9,615 documented cases of TB within the U.S., up from 8,320 reported in 2022 and the highest tally since 2013. This increase was found among both U.S. born and non-U.S. born residents, though the risk of TB is generally higher in the latter group.

TB is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It spreads between people through the air and typically affects the lungs, though the bacteria can reach other parts of the body. Acute cases of TB usually result in respiratory symptoms like chest pains, chills, and coughing up blood. But the infection also often becomes latent, not causing illness until years later when the immune system is weakened for another reason, such as HIV infection.

For years, the U.S. has had one of the lowest TB rates in the world, aided by programs that try to identify and quickly treat people who either have active TB or are carrying latent TB that could someday reactivate. As a result, the U.S. experienced ever-lowering cases of TB for 27 years, with an especially substantial drop in 2020. But this sharp drop was largely caused by the disruptions of the covid-19 pandemic on existing TB programs, which led to reduced testing, diagnosis, and treatment. The after-effects of the pandemic have contributed to TB’s resurgence ever since, with 2023 being the third straight year of increased cases.

The report authors note that TB is not a serious threat to most Americans, and about 85% of reported cases in the U.S. come from the bacteria reactivating in someone who has carried it for a while, not from recently caught infections, so the danger of sustained outbreaks is low as well. But TB has been on the rise globally. A report from the World Health Organization last November estimated that there were 10.6 million cases of active TB in 2022, including 7.5 million newly diagnosed cases, the highest seen since the WHO began tracking TB globally.

There has been progress on some fronts: Global deaths from TB declined from 1.6 million in 2021 to 1.3 million in 2022, for instance, showing that more people are getting timely treatment. And the estimated gap between reported and actual new cases of TB is thought to have shrunk back to pre-pandemic levels. But given the drop in reported deaths from covid-19 last year, it’s almost certain that TB has once again become the largest cause of death from a single germ. Getting rid of TB in the U.S. and worldwide is still very possible, but it will take plenty of effort, the CDC authors say.

“Renewed progress toward TB elimination will require strong public health systems both domestically and globally that are responsive to health disparities, capable of maintaining essential disease prevention and control activities, and prepared to withstand the next pandemic or other large-scale crisis,” they wrote.
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Tererune · Apr 5, 2024

Ivermectin and lung bleach for all the righties right away.

Own us libs motherfuckers

Shirogayne · Apr 6, 2024

I wish both the anti-vax MAGAs and the leftist soccer moms who took medical advice from an F-list celebrity a very "Fuck you all, I wanna kick you in the nuts"

MikeH92467 · Apr 5, 2024

Florida Legislators and governor acted with their usual foresight 12 years ago when it comes to TB.
Health officials in Florida hastened their closure of the nation's only dedicated tuberculosis hospital on cost-cutting grounds as one of the worst outbreaks of the deadly disease in 20 years was taking a grip on the state, it has been revealed.

At least 3,000 people in Jacksonville may have been exposed to the highly contagious respiratory illness that claimed 13 lives in the city and left another 100 sick in the last two years, a report from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concluded.

But news of the severity of the outbreak never reached Florida's politicians, who voted in March to bring forward the closure of the 100-bed AG Holley state hospital in Lantana by six months to July 2.

Volpone · Apr 5, 2024

Illegals spread even more disease than homosexuals. AND! It's usually backwards, Dark Ages disease.

Fisherman's Worf · Apr 5, 2024

Who needs lungs anyway

Shirogayne · Apr 6, 2024

Volpone said: ↑

Illegals spread even more disease than homosexuals. AND! It's usually backwards, Dark Ages disease.
Click to expand...

Man, you gotta try harder than that to rage bait, buddy

Bailey · Apr 9, 2024

Volpone said: ↑

Illegals spread even more disease than homosexuals. AND! It's usually backwards, Dark Ages disease.
Click to expand...

Oh wow, edgy.

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Hey, Guys, Tuberculosis is Back!

Tuckerfan BMF

Tererune Troll princess and Magical Girl

Shirogayne Gay™ Formerly Important

MikeH92467 RadioNinja

Volpone Zombie Hunter

Fisherman's Worf I am the Seaman, I am the Walrus, Qu-Qu-Qapla'!

Shirogayne Gay™ Formerly Important

Bailey It's always Christmas Eve Super Moderator

Log in or Sign up

Hey, Guys, Tuberculosis is Back!

Tuckerfan BMF

Tererune Troll princess and Magical Girl

Shirogayne Gay™ Formerly Important

MikeH92467 RadioNinja

Volpone Zombie Hunter

Fisherman's Worf I am the Seaman, I am the Walrus, Qu-Qu-Qapla'!

Shirogayne Gay™ Formerly Important

Bailey It's always Christmas Eve Super Moderator

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