Controlling tuberculosis in China

91946 Controlling Tuberculosis in China September 17, 2002 Today, tuberculosis (TB) is surpassed only by HIV/AIDS as a leading killer of adults worldwide and, as with the AIDS epidemic, the poorest bear the brunt of this disease. Although the incidence of TB in China is moderate relative to other countries in Asia and Africa, it is home to more than 1.3 million new TB sufferers each year —16 percent of the world's TB cases.  To contain TB, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that governments adopt a strategy known as Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS).  This plan involves not just finding and curing infectious TB patients, but ensuring that they receive free care, and that they take their full six-month treatment. In 1992, the Chinese government received a World Bank credit of $130 million for an infectious and endemic disease project which included more than $50 million for TB control.  In partnership with the World Bank, WHO, and the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Chinese government sought to implement DOTS in 13 provinces that account for roughly half of the Chinese population.  This involved the purchase of  low-cost, high-quality drugs, the training of staff, and the provision of free diagnosis and treatment to infectious TB patients.  The project also included performance-based incentives for health providers, who have foregone any income in order to provide free care to patients.  By the end of 2000, nearly 1.2 million infectious TB patients had been diagnosed and cured as a direct result of the DOTS program. In March 2002, the World Bank provided $104 million, augmented by a $37 million grant from DFID, to expand China's national TB control efforts and reach more of the country's poor population.  China's remarkable treatment success rate of 95 percent is the best of any country undertaking a large-scale national TB control campaign. Related Links:  China  Tuberculosis Updated: September 2002