New TB strains threaten global health

 By Han Manman 

More money and better science are needed to rein in new strains of tuberculosis (TB) that are tough or nearly impossible to treat, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday in Beijing. 

 TB is contagious: like the common cold, it spreads through the air. But only people who are sick with TB in their lungs are infectious.

 “Drug-resistant tuberculosis is a growing global public health threat. We are at a turning point. We need to address it,” Cornelia Hennig, WHO’s TB program coordinator for China, said a news briefing in Beijing.

 The UN body said drug-resistant TB develops as a result of inconsistent or partial treatment when patients take medicines irregularly.

 Hennig said there are severe shortcomings in tackling TB, and coordinated care for the disease fails largely because of feeble heath care in developing countries that are hardest hit.

 According to WHO statistics, an estimated 1.4 million TB cases occur in China annually, of which 600,000 are infectious. It is not clear how many people in China die from the disease every year or how many multidrug-resistant TB cases there are in the country.

 The report came a week before the start of an international conference in Beijing that will focus on ways to deal with drug-resistant TB strains.

 Attendees of the three-day meeting include health ministers from 27 countries dealing with multidrug-resistant TB cases, including India, China and Russia.

 Discussions will revolve around how to increase prevention and management of multidrug-resistant TB cases, and participants will draft a five-year strategic plan, Liu Yuhong, a WHO program officer, said Tuesday.

 The meeting, which begins Wednesday, is sponsored by WHO, along with the Chinese Ministry of Health and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.