24.03.2010:
World Tuberculosis Day
On 24 March 1882, the German scientist Robert Koch published his findings on tuberculosis in Berlin. He astonished the general public and experts by identifying the previously unknown "mycobacterium tuberculosis" as the cause of the disease. In 1905, he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology for his discovery.
Today, 125 years later, tuberculosis is still very common. It tops the list of fatal infectious diseases; the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that some 1.7 million people died from tuberculosis in 2004. Of those infected with the disease, 95 per cent live in developing countries. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) estimates that about one third of the world’s population is infected with the tuberculosis agent.
Although people with a healthy immune system generally recover from the disease without treatment, in combination with other illnesses, for example AIDS, it is often fatal. According to the WHO, about one third of people infected with HIV are also suffering from tuberculosis. The disease is the most common cause of death in people with AIDS – therefore efforts to combat tuberculosis need to be combined with HIV/AIDS control programmes if they are to be successful.
The German Development Ministry is contributing to global efforts to tackle AIDS and tuberculosis in a variety of ways, for example by strengthening health systems or promoting prevention measures in developing countries. Particularly in Africa and Asia, there is a need to provide quick and sustained assistance for the efforts being made to combat tuberculosis.
