WHO’s Dismal Report on TB/HIV
The number of HIV-related TB deaths is much higher than previously estimated. In 2007 there were an estimated 1.37 million new cases of TB among HIV-infected people and 456,000 deaths worldwide, according to a new global TB control report issued by the World Health Organization (WHO). The 2009 Global TB Control Report reveals that one out of four TB deaths is HIV-related, twice as many as previously recognized.
The situation is made more urgent by increasing rates of drug-resistant TB in areas with a high prevalence of HIV. In 2007, an estimated 500,000 people had multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), but less than 1 percent of them were receiving treatments based on WHO's recommended standards.
The report also documents concerns over an increasing shortage in funding, given the current financial crisis. There is an estimated $1.5 billion gap in funding needed to fight the disease this year.
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