Defending Children from Tuberculosis Requires Focus and Investment

On World Tuberculosis Day, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) called for urgent investment in resources, support, care, and information for the fight against tuberculosis (TB).

Every day, more than 70 people die from TB in the Americas.

And an estimated 18,300 children aged 15 years and under are living with TB in the Americas.

And in India, the number of TB cases increased 19% in 2021 over the previous year, according to the annual TB report released by Union Health.

"People with TB are among the most marginalized and vulnerable in society and face barriers to accessing life-saving care," said Marcos Espinal, Director for Communicable Diseases and Environmental Determinants of Health at PAHO, in a press statement issued on March 23, 2022.

"All necessary steps must be taken to fully restore TB services disrupted by the pandemic, especially for the most vulnerable. Investing more in TB will save millions of lives, including children."

Global spending on TB diagnostics, treatment, and prevention in 2020 was less than half of the worldwide target of US$ 13 billion annually.

According to WHO, an additional US$ 1.1 billion per year is needed for research and development.

On March 21, 2022, the World Health Organization released updated guidelines for managing TB in children and adolescents.

They include recommendations for expanded diagnostic testing and treatment, medicines to treat drug resistant-TB in children, and new models of decentralized and integrated care to improve access to care and preventive treatment closer to home.

Over the years, the inexpensive TB-prevention Bovis Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine has been administered annually to tens of millions of children.

The U.S. NIH says the BCG vaccine is relatively safe not associated with severe complications.

Note: This PAHO media release was edited for clarity and manually curated for mobile readers.