Abstract

PIP: Preventable diseases continue to afflict billions of people worldwide in both rich and poor countries. With regard to tuberculosis (TB), much has been learned over the past century about Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the responsible infectious agent, and its medical treatment and cure. TB is, however, an old disease currently making a resurgence at the global level. An estimated one third of the world's population is infected with M. tuberculosis and HIV infection is increasing the proportion of those in whom infection will progress to TB disease. HIV and M. tuberculosis infections co-exist most extensively in the poorest parts of the world. TB control programs are inadequate, the degree of multidrug resistance is growing, and infections are increasingly transmitted freely across international borders. The combination of these factors suggests that scientific progress and humanitarian aid to developing countries may not be enough to avert the potential tragedy of untreatable TB. The author discusses the history of TB, the present situation, and the future.