Rapid assessment of the country tuberculosis emergency response and preparedness in mitigating the impact of cross-border migration on the tuberculosis epidemic in Czechia

Overview

An increase in tuberculosis (‎TB)‎ and drug-resistant TB notifications was reported by Czechia to WHO in 2022 and observed over the first 10 months of 2023. This pointed to a recovery of the country’s health system from the impact of COVID-19, in addition to increased migration processes across the region, mainly heightened by the war in Ukraine. The WHO mission to Czechia addressed reported cases of multidrug-resistant TB (‎MDR-TB)‎, particularly among children. Mission outcomes indicate that most of the notified MDR-TB cases have a foreign origin, largely from Ukraine. Available evidence suggests that most cases likely resulted from the reactivation of latent infection or a new exposure to TB before migration, rather than from recent transmission occurring in the host country.