Doctors issue warning about another Victorian era disease resurging
In this DML Report…
The UK Health Security Agency reports an 11% rise in tuberculosis (TB) cases in 2023, with nearly 5,000 patients diagnosed, marking a significant surge in this Victorian-era disease. Experts warn that the UK risks losing its "low incidence" status as cases continue to climb, with a further 13% increase in provisional 2024 data. TB, which often affects the lungs and spreads through coughs and sneezes, is particularly dangerous for immunocompromised individuals, young children, and the elderly, killing an estimated 1.25 million globally in 2023, according to the World Health Organization.
The UKHSA links the rise in TB cases to increased migration from high-incidence countries, noting that 80% of 2023 cases were among people born outside the UK, despite doubled pre-entry screenings between 2021 and 2023. Urban and poorer areas, like parts of Greater Manchester, show above-average rates, reflecting TB’s association with crowded living conditions. The agency’s annual report highlights the role of post-COVID social mixing and changing migration patterns in the resurgence of infectious diseases, including TB, which can also spread passively through breathing, even without symptoms.
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Globally, TB remains the leading infectious disease killer, surpassing COVID-19, with 8.2 million cases recorded in 2023 by the WHO. In the UK, Dame Jenny Harries of the UKHSA stresses that TB is a serious public health issue, with the current trajectory threatening the nation’s WHO low-incidence threshold of 10 cases per 100,000 people. While treatable with antibiotics and rarely fatal in countries like Britain, TB’s global mortality rate of one in six underscores its severity, particularly as it destroys organs, causing internal bleeding and fluid buildup, necessitating urgent public health action.