WHO names deadliest virus today

Tuberculosis (TB) is the world's deadliest infectious disease. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), TB is the leading cause of death from infectious diseases worldwide, ahead of HIV/AIDS. An estimated 1.5 million people will die from TB in 2020.

Although 66 million lives have been saved since 2000, the COVID-19 pandemic has dampened the positive impact of these gains. 2020 marks the first time in more than a decade that the number of TB deaths has increased. Ongoing war and conflict have further exacerbated the situation of vulnerable populations.

Children and adolescents with TB are worse off. In 2020, an estimated 63% of children and adolescents under 15 years of age with TB were not covered by life-saving TB diagnosis and treatment services or were not officially counted as having such access; the proportion was even higher (72%) among children under 5 years of age. Nearly two thirds of children under 5 years of age eligible for coverage did not receive preventive TB treatment and therefore remain at risk for the disease.

What is TB

TB is caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which primarily affects the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body. It spreads through the air when a person with TB coughs or sneezes, and can be spread to other people who breathe in the bacteria.

TB is a curable and treatable disease, but the emergence of drug-resistant strains of the bacteria has made it more difficult to control. WHO has set a goal of ending the global TB epidemic by 2030, but achieving this goal will require significant investment in research, prevention and treatment.

What the tuberculosis situation is in different countries

The tuberculosis (TB) situation varies by country and region, with some regions having a higher burden of the disease than others.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2021, 10.6 million people around the world will have tuberculosis (TB) - six million men, 3.4 million women and 1.2 million children. TB is present in all countries and age groups. But TB is curable and preventable.

According to the World Health Organization's Global Tuberculosis Report 2022, 10.6 million people became ill with TB in 2021, an increase of 4.5% over 2020, and 1.6 million people died from TB (including 187,000 people living with HIV).

In addition, the burden of drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) increased by 3% between 2020 and 2021 and there were 450 000 new cases of rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB). The increase in the number of people with tuberculosis and its drug-resistant forms is the first in many years.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted many types of health care but has had a particularly negative impact on TB services. The situation of susceptible populations is further worsened by ongoing wars in Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

The war will worsen the already difficult situation with the incidence of HIV and tuberculosis in Ukraine

This is the forecast of the experts of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, whose director Peter Sands said that high refugee flows, overcrowding in shelters and shortages of health services contribute to the spread of these infectious diseases.

Ukraine had one of the highest rates of TB and HIV/AIDS in Eastern Europe and Central Asia even before Russia launched a full-scale war. With the war, the risk of infection has increased not only for high-risk groups such as drug addicts, sex workers, homeless people and the very poor but for everyone else, said Andrey Klepikov, executive director of the Public Health Alliance in an interview with DW.

To fight the global TB epidemic, WHO has developed a strategy to end TB, which aims to reduce TB deaths by 90% and TB incidence by 80% by 2030. This will require a coordinated global effort, including increased funding for TB research, prevention and treatment, as well as better cooperation between countries and organizations.

Other infectious diseases that can be deadly include HIV/AIDS, malaria, viral hepatitis and others, but the severity and lethality of these diseases can vary depending on factors such as access to health care, vaccination and treatment options.

Which outbreak could be the next pandemic

It is difficult to predict with certainty which outbreak of infection could become the next pandemic as there are many factors that could contribute to the emergence and spread of a new disease. However, scientists and public health experts are constantly monitoring potential pandemic threats and developing strategies to prevent and respond to outbreaks.

Factors that may increase the likelihood of an outbreak becoming a pandemic include:

New viruses: Viruses recently discovered or never before seen in humans may pose a greater risk as the human population may have little or no immunity to the virus.

High transmissibility: Diseases that are easily transmitted from person to person by air, touch or other means can quickly become widespread.

Severity of disease: Diseases that cause severe illness or death are more likely to cause widespread fear and panic, resulting in wider spread.

Global interconnectivity: The ease and frequency of travel and trade between countries may increase the risk of disease spread globally.

Some examples of recent outbreaks that have been identified as potential pandemic threats include:

COVID-19: The current COVID-19 pandemic is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which emerged in Wuhan, China, in late 2019 and has since spread worldwide, causing significant illness, death and economic disruption.

Ebola: The Ebola virus can cause severe and often fatal illness and has led to several outbreaks in Africa in recent years.

MERS: Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) is caused by a virus similar to the one that caused the SARS outbreak in 2003 and has caused sporadic outbreaks in the Middle East.

Influenza: Influenza viruses can cause seasonal outbreaks each year but some strains can cause pandemics, such as the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009.

It is important for governments, organisations and individuals to take steps to prevent and prepare for potential pandemics, such as improving surveillance systems, developing vaccines and treatments, and promoting public health measures such as hand washing and social distancing.