World TB Day
is commemorated annually on March 24. The event celebrates the date in
1882 when Dr. Robert Koch announced his discovery of the bacillus that
causes tuberculosis.
This year World Tuberculosis Day theme is 'Find TB. Treat TB. Working together to eliminate TB'.
Sri Lanka expects to reduce the number of TB patients to one per million by 2050. A total of 9,473 TB patients were detected from Sri Lanka last year and 24.7% of them are from the Colombo district, 11.3% from the Gampaha district and 7.1% from the Kandy district. Western Province recorded 42.7% of the total number of TB patients.
The government spends between Rs.525 to Rs.600 million annually for TB prevention and treatment.
TB is a disease which does not spread from the second week of commencement of treatment and it can be permanently cured with the six month treatment plan. Breaking the treatment plan can lead to antibiotic resistance.