(This article is a part of the web-exclusive series from our latest issue 'At the cost of health'. More from the print quarterly here.)
In 2015, the World Health Organisation (WHO) stated that approximately a quarter of the total global burden of tuberculosis was shouldered by India. Before that, in 2006, after looking at the available public health sector data, WHO declared that there were 110-132 cases of 'multi-drug resistant' tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in India. Though there have been efforts to control this epidemic, in the past decades, new cases of MDR-TB and 'extensively drug-resistant' tuberculosis (XDR-TB) have emerged.
Recent international media attention has been centred on a new and deadlier strain of tuberculosis, categorised as 'totally drug resistant' tuberculosis (TDR-TB). In 2009, 15 tuberculosis patients in Iran were reported to be resistant to all anti-TB drugs tested. Then, in December 2011, a team of doctors in Mumbai reported four patients with TDR-TB. A few weeks later, the Times of India reported another eight cases in Mumbai. The discovery of TDR-TB has created a lot of speculation within the Indian healthcare system and is a strong contender for the title of the next 'superbug' that could haunt Southasia.
Tuberculosis is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It spreads from person to person through air. When infected, TB usually affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body, such as the brain, intestines, kidneys, and even the spine. Symptoms of TB manifest differently, depending on where the TB bacteria is growing in the body. In pulmonary TB, symptoms range from a chronic cough, pain in the chest, fatigue, coughing up of blood, weight loss, fever and night-sweats.