British TB cases at highest since 1980s
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Cases of tuberculosis (TB) in Britain rose by 5.5 percent in the past year and are at their highest levels since the 1980s, health authorities said on Tuesday.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said there were more than 9,150 cases of TB in 2009, most of them among immigrants.
The main burden of infection was in London with 3,476 cases reported in 2009, accounting for 38 percent of the nationwide total. Nearly three-quarters of all cases were in people born outside Britain, the figures showed.
“The increase we have seen this year is the biggest rise in the number of cases since 2005,” said Ibrahim Abubakar, a TB expert at the HPA. An official said infection rates were at their highest since the 1980s.
TB is caused by bacteria and usually affects the lungs. Antibiotics can cure it, but about 1.7 million people around the world die from it every year.
“We must remain vigilant in our fight against TB. This is an entirely preventable and curable infection, but it can be fatal if prompt diagnosis and treatment are not given,” Abubakar said.
Health officials were not able to say exactly why the rise had occurred, and said no one particular factor was responsible for the increase, which has been gradual.
Up to a third of people worldwide are infected with the bacterium that causes TB, although only a small percentage ever develop the disease.
Some studies have shown that people with substance abuse problems and those who live in hard-to-reach communities are more prone to the illness than the general population.
The AIDS epidemic drove up the number of TB cases across the world in the late 1980s and 1990s because the immune suppression caused by HIV can make a person far more susceptible to TB.
The HPA said the West Midlands region reported the second highest number of cases, accounting for 11.3 percent of cases, and rises were seen in 8 out of 9 regions across the country.
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LONDON (Reuters)
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