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March 24 Is World TB Day

March 24 is World TB Day, an opportunity to raise awareness about tuberculosis (TB) and the need for expanded testing and treatment worldwide. The latest data from the CDC indicate that TB cases in the U.S. have reached an all-time low of 9412 cases, but the decline has slowed. Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 9 million people fell ill with TB -- including 480,000 with multidrug-resistant TB -- and 1.5 million people died from the disease in 2013. An estimated 1.1 million people living with HIV were coinfected with TB in 2013, and TB is among the leading causes of death for HIV-positive people, accounting for 25% of all HIV-related deaths.

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World TB Day: Find, Treat, and Cure Tuberculosis

In recognition of World TB Day on March 24, organizations released their latest figures on tuberculosis in the U.S. and worldwide and called for more action to improve access to testing, care, and treatment, while 2 recent studies offered promise for shorter therapy.

March 24 Is World TB Day

PaMZ Combination Regimen Shortens and Simplifies Tuberculosis Treatment

CROI 2015: High-Dose Rifampin Shortens Time to Tuberculosis Clearance

3/24/15

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CROI 2015: High-Dose Rifampin Shortens Time to Tuberculosis Clearance

A combination regimen containing high-dose rifampin (also known as rifampicin) was associated with faster tuberculosis bacteria culture conversion in people with drug-sensitive TB, but moxifloxacin and the experimental drug SQ109 showed no benefit compared to standard therapy, according to results from a study presented at the recent 2015 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Seattle.

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PaMZ Combination Regimen Shortens and Simplifies Tuberculosis Treatment

An oral regimen combining the new drug pretomanid (PA-824) with the older moxifloxacin and pyrazinamide -- known as PaMZ for short -- has the potential to reduce the duration of treatment for drug-sensitive and even some drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB), according to findings from a study published in the March 17 online edition The Lancet. Nearly twice as many patients treated with the PaMZ regimen had undetectable TB in cultured sputum compared to those taking standard therapy.

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March 24 Is World TB Day

March 24 is World TB Day, an opportunity to raise awareness about tuberculosis (TB) and the need for expanded testing and treatment worldwide. The World Health Organization's theme for 2016 is "Unite to End Tuberculosis". Ending TB by 2030 is a target of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

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