Mexico Reports 28,000 Tuberculosis Cases Annually

While efforts to reduce tuberculosis infections progressed steadily before the pandemic, the outbreak was a major setback to those advances, reports the World Health Organization (WHO). This year’s World Tuberculosis Day aims to foster optimism and stimulate high-level leadership, increased investments, swift implementation of new WHO recommendations, adoption of innovations, accelerated action and multisectoral collaboration to fight this epidemic.

“Tuberculosis is a curable disease, so it is essential to maintain prevention programs and actions to meet global goals,” says Mónica Guardo Martínez, Consultant, PAHO/WHO. 

Each year, tuberculosis causes 1.6 million deaths globally. Over 28,000 cases of tuberculosis are reported annually in Mexico and 30% of those infected are unaware of their condition. About 25% of the world's population has been infected with tuberculosis bacteria. However, most of those exposed do not develop tuberculosis disease, as reported by WHO. Although tuberculosis primarily impacts individuals during their most productive years as adults, the disease can affect people of all age groups. 

Before the pandemic, the global incidence of tuberculosis decreased by about 2% annually, with cases contracting by 11% between 2015 and 2020, according to the WHO. However, the pandemic caused a serious neglect of TB prevention and care. In 2021, approximately 10.6 million people worldwide were infected with tuberculosis, a 4.5% increase from the previous year. Furthermore, the burden of drug-resistant tuberculosis grew by 3% between 2020 and 2021, with 450,000 new cases of rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis being detected. This marks the first time in years that both the number of tuberculosis cases and drug-resistant cases have risen.

In 2020, over 50% of the children and adolescents who suffered from tuberculosis did not have access to early diagnosis or treatment. Moreover, two thirds of children under five years old did not receive preventive treatment regardless of their eligibility. “The COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the conflict, other crises and socio-economic inequities, has reversed years of progress made in the fight to end tuberculosis,” says Tereza Kasaeva, Director, WHO’s Global TB Program.

This problem is forcing governments to intensify their efforts to reduce tuberculosis incidence by 80% and mortality by 90% by 2030, as stipulated by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). To achieve this goal, it is important to improve the detection through active case searches in communities and molecular tests whenever possible, explains Ruy López, Head, CENAPRECE. “To eliminate tuberculosis, all contacts of infected persons must be studied and patients should receive proper treatment and close monitoring until they are cured,” he adds.