CDC study shows drug-resistant TB will rise by 2040

New CDC Report: Drug-resistant TB will rise if we don’t stop spread

A new CDC study provides compelling evidence that drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) is set to rise over the next two decades in countries with some of the world's highest TB burdens. The study also suggests that person-to-person transmission, rather than inadequate treatment, will likely play an increasingly larger role in the spread of the disease in the future.

Drug-resistant TB is a major problem worldwide—and on track to get even worse.

In addition to infecting two billion people worldwide, TB can also become drug-resistant, which means the drugs we rely on to treat the disease are no longer effective. Drug-resistant TB is found in every country in the world and can kill millions if left unchecked or undiagnosed.

Using a complex mathematical model that brings together the best available data from multiple sources, the new CDC study, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, reports:

• The proportion of new drug-resistant TB cases in four key high-burden countries will increase substantially by 2040, unless there are major changes in the global response.
• Acquired drug resistance, or resistance due to inadequate TB treatment, will cause fewer cases over time.
• Person-to-person transmission, rather than inadequate or ineffective treatment, is likely to play an increasingly larger role in the transmission of drug-resistant TB over time.

The paper underlines the importance of working together to:

• Strengthen infection control measures and intensify contact tracing to stop transmission from person to person.
• Focus on stopping spread of TB in households, health centers, and communities.
• Develop more effective diagnostic tests to rapidly and accurately detect drug-resistant TB.

CDC is on the frontlines to combat resistant TB at home and abroad.

Learn more about how CDC is working to find, cure, and prevent TB worldwide.

Take Action!

• Read the new CDC study and share it with your colleagues.

• Watch and share this video about drug-resistant TB on social media.

• Learn how CDC’s AR Solutions Initiative is investing in work to combat drug-resistant TB worldwide.