World TB Day is recognized annually on March 24, the date in 1882 that Mycobacterium tuberculosis — the bacteria that causes tuberculosis — was discovered, according to the CDC.
"World Tuberculosis Day is a prime opportunity to raise awareness and educate patients and healthcare providers about the disease," says Sarojini Sonia Qasba, MD, an infectious disease specialist with Bethesda, Md.-based Suburban Hospital, part of Johns Hopkins Medicine. "On this day, I want to stress the importance of identifying the signs and symptoms of active TB to accurately diagnose and treat patients, as well as the importance of testing at-risk patients for latent TB before it progresses to active TB."
Here are eight things to know about TB and how to celebrate World TB Day 2017.
1. One-third of people in the world are infected with TB, according to the CDC, and 10.4 million people were sickened with TB disease in 2015 alone. 2015 also saw 1.8 million TB-related deaths reported worldwide.
2. TB is a particular problem for people with HIV, as it is a leading killer of HIV-positive individuals, the CDC says.
3. The number TB cases reported in the U.S. ticked up slightly in 2015 after declining annually from 1993 to 2014. However, the TB incidence rate in the U.S. remained steady at about 3 per 100,000 people in 2015.
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4. Several countries have much higher burden of TB, like India, Indonesia, China, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa, according to Dr. Qasba, and this is likely because patients don't have access to the tools necessary to diagnose and treat the disease.
5. The CDC says "current efforts to find and treat latent TB infection and TB disease are not sufficient," and notes misdiagnosis is common. Dr. Qasba agrees, saying, "It is critical for healthcare providers to be aware of the latest advancements and research in TB diagnostics and treatment. Unfortunately, many physicians don't immediately think of TB as part of the differential diagnosis when they see a patient with a cough, a fever or an abnormal chest X-ray. By staying up to date on all new diagnostic and treatment practices, we can more accurately and effectively treat our patients."
6. Dr. Qasba says the best way to start seeing "dramatic declines" in TB rates around the world is by "focusing our efforts on raising awareness about the risk of TB, the importance of diagnostic testing and expanding access to necessary tools and information … While there are several obstacles to overcome, it is vital we stand together to prioritize the fight against the devastating disease."
7. The theme of this year's World TB Day is "Unite to End TB", and the CDC says it's working with domestic and international partners to eliminate the disease.
8. The CDC provides World TB Day resources, which can be found here.
Note: An earlier version of this article misquoted Dr. Qasba as saying "progressive to active TB". In actuality, she said "progresses". We regret the error.