JOHANNESBURG, Oct 21 2021 (IPS) - Before COVID-19 came along, tuberculosis (TB) was a primary focus of health authorities in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2019, approximately 1.4 million people were diagnosed with TB in the region, but epidemiologists estimated that 1 million more had TB but were neither diagnosed nor treated.

"Human rights should be recognised in all TB policies, including enabling each person to know their TB status and to provide them with affordable, accessible, and equitable access to services and care." An opinion piece, published in Spotlight, elaborates on important aspects of quality TB care.

IMPAACT4TB welcomes gains in TB prevention among people living with HIV, but calls for urgent action to address TB prevention deficits among children and household contacts of people affected by TB.

A study has found a new fingerstick blood test to be a promising tool for screening tuberculosis patients. But it’s too early to say if it’s the game changer the TB community needs to detect more TB cases and prevent transmission.

New results show a much shorter treatment regimen for drug-resistant TB is superior to current options.

An opinion piece by Zameer Brey, Marcus Low, Yogan Pillay and Ingrid Schoeman, published in Spotlight, reflects on the terrifying picture of the TB epidemic in South Africa and suggests what needs to be done for a successful TB recovery plan in the country.

In the opening press conference of the 52nd Union World Conference on Lung Health (WCOLH), held virtually on 19-22 October 2021, researchers from the University of Cape Town in South Africa announced results from their study of TB positive people carried out in a specially constructed Respiratory Aerosol Sampling Chamber which suggest that coughing, thought previously to be the main means of spreading TB, might not be the primary driver of TB transmission. Instead, tidal, or regular, breathing may be a far more significant contributor to the aerosolization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterial cause of TB.

--QIAGEN leverages QuantiFERON®-TB technology to advance global efforts against TB
--TB IGRA testing now accessible in high burden, low resource and decentralized settings
--Study data also showcased at the Union World Conference show promising results

BOSTON/PARIS, 18 October 2021 — Hundreds of patient volunteers from four continents have enrolled in a trial that aims to find safer, shorter, and effective treatments for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), an airborne, infectious disease that has grown resistant to standard medications. A group of scientists and clinicians led by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Partners In Health (PIH) and Interactive Research and Development (IRD) make up the endTB consortium conducting the groundbreaking study funded by Unitaid. 

Using cutting-edge genomic sequencing techniques, researchers at the University of Oxford have identified almost all the genomic variation that gives people resistance to 13 of the most common TB drug treatments.