DGHT News: World TB Day 2016

World Tuberculosis Day 2016

On World Tuberculosis (TB) Day 2016, we join organizations from all over the world to “Unite to End Tuberculosis.” TB is among the greatest health threats worldwide, infecting as many as 2 billion people – nearly one third of the world’s population – and causing 1.5 million deaths a year. Recent public health crises underscore the fact that infectious disease knows no borders. The reality is that TB anywhere is TB everywhere. In order to effectively fight TB, CDC is battling it on two fronts – both here at home in the United States and abroad. As part of these efforts, CDC’s Division of Global HIV and TB is working side by side with ministries of health in more than 25 countries, implementing on-the-ground interventions and leading groundbreaking research to help find, cure, and prevent TB worldwide.

In support of World TB Day, DGHT has developed the following materials:

The following is an excerpt from a World TB Day Statement by CDC's Director of the Division of Global HIV and TB, Shannon Hader, MD, MPH in commemoration of World TB Day.

	“Today on World TB Day – more than a century after the scientific discovery of the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB) – TB continues to be one of the world’s most deadly infectious diseases and among the leading causes of death worldwide. That TB is preventable and curable makes this all the more unacceptable. Here at CDC, we are driving innovation to end TB as a global public health threat – conducting leading-edge research, developing new treatment regimens and establishing best practices to end TB transmission in health care facilities. But we can’t do it alone. If we are to see an end to TB in our lifetime, we must continue to work together to fight this epidemic on multiple fronts, and stop the suffering associated with this deadly disease, here at home – and around the world.”

Resources

• Leadership Message: CDC’s DGHT Director Shannon Hader, MD, MPH shares her vision and CDC’s role for combatting TB worldwide.
• Huffington Post publishes a commentary from Dr. Hader on the global TB epidemic and CDC’s unique role.
• A Leadership QA with Dr. Shannon Hader in Science Speaks in commemoration of World TB Day.
• Expert profile: A feature story profiling DGHT’s own Dr. Peter Cegielski, a global leader in TB research who helped discover the deadliest strain of TB, and coined the term extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR TB).
• MMWR:  An MMWR authored by DGHT researchers and a corresponding web feature story on CDC’s partnership in Nigeria that isarming frontline healthcare workers with essential skills to combat TB.
• Video:  CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, shares his firsthand experiences on the front lines of the global TB epidemic and discusses the urgent need to protect healthcare workers from this disease.
• Graphics:
• An infographic highlighting the impact of TB globally and CDC’s fight against the global TB epidemic
• A fact sheet highlighting the impact of multi-drug resistant TB (MDR TB) around the globe and CDC’s efforts to combat it.
• Social Media: See more resources on the Center for Global Health social media channels including:
• Join an exclusive World TB Facebook chat with top TB expert Dr. Cegielski here (chat begins at 1PM EST on 3/24)
• Spread the word by sharing CDC’s Tweets and Facebook Posts on Global TB

Read more here about our efforts in support of World TB Day as well as our work every day to combat TB globally.