MORE PEOPLE DYING FROM TB ARE HIV-INFECTED THAN PREVIOUSLY RECOGNIZED
Press Release for World TB Day and the launch of the WHO Global TB Control Report
24 March 2009 - Rio De Janeiro - The total number of new tuberculosis (TB) cases remained stable in 2007, and the percentage of the world's population becoming ill with TB has continued the slow decline that was first observed in 2004, according to a new report released by the World Health Organization (WHO) today.
However, the 2009 Global TB Control Report also reveals that one out of four TB deaths is HIV related, twice as many as previously recognized. In 2007, there were an estimated 1.37 million new cases of tuberculosis among HIV-infected people and 456,000 deaths. This figure reflects an improvement in the quality of the country data, which are now more representative and available from more countries than in previous years. ... contd...