Resumen

Tuberculosis (TB), one of the most ancient and deadly diseases of mankind, has ravaged human communities since the beginning of civilization, and still remains one of the most devastating infectious diseases in the 21st century. The latest report released by the World Health Organization estimates that 1.45 million deaths each year are due to TB, with 9 million incident cases and 14 million prevalent cases (WHO, Global tuberculosis control 2011, http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/en/index.html). Most TB cases occur in developing countries, with Africa and some south-east Asian countries bearing most of the burden (> 300 TB cases/100,000 population), though high TB rates are observed also in China, Russia, eastern European countries and South America. TB is also a disease that targets young adults and as such it also creates a main obstacle towards a sound economic and social development of the countries where it is endemic.

Palabras clave: Tuberculosis Mycobacterium.

2012-03-14   |   382 visitas   |   Evalua este artículo 0 valoraciones

Vol. 6 Núm.1. Enero 2012 Pags. 4-5 J Infect Developing Countries 2012; 6(1)