TB is an infectious bacterial disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which most commonly affects the lungs. It is transmitted from person to person through the air. The symptoms of active TB include cough, chest pains, weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats. In healthy people, infection often does not cause symptoms, because the person’s immune system acts to wall off the bacteria.
Key facts
- Tuberculosis remains one of the world’s deadliest infectious killers. The COVID-19 pandemic and socioeconomic inequalities have reversed years of progress in the fight against TB and have increased the burden on those affected, especially the most vulnerable.
- Globally, in 2021, an estimated 10.6 million people were ill with TB, and 1.6 million died from TB; of these, 187,000 were co-infected with HIV.
- In the Americas, in 2021, 309,000 cases of tuberculosis were estimated and 215,116 (70%) were notified.
- Estimated deaths for the region were 32,000, of which 11% (9,000) corresponded to TB/HIV co-infection.
- A total of 4,820 cases of MDR/MDR-TB were diagnosed. Of these, 95% started treatment.
- The END TB Strategy aims to end the global TB epidemic and is linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under three high-level indicators: reduce the number of TB deaths by 95% compared to 2015, reduce new cases by 90% between 2015 and 2035, and to ensure that no family is facing catastrophic costs due to TB.
Fact sheet
