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World Tuberculosis Day 2021: Theme, history and significance of the day
The day aims to increase efforts to end the global epidemic of TB, one of the world’s deadliest infectious killers which according to data by World Health Organisation (WHO) has claimed the lives of around 1,400,000 people in the year 2019.
World Tuberculosis (TB) Day is observed each year on March 24 to raise awareness amongst the public about the debilitating health, social as well as economic consequences of tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that affects the lungs and spreads to people when an infected person sneezes or coughs which is the reason why timely diagnosis and medical attention is the key to fighting the disease.
The day aims to increase efforts to end the global epidemic of TB, one of the world’s deadliest infectious killers which according to data by World Health Organisation (WHO) has claimed the lives of around 1,400,000 people in the year 2019. WHO also said that around 63 million lives have been saved since 2000 because of the global efforts against tuberculosis. "TB remains one of the world’s deadliest infectious killers. Each day, nearly 4000 lose their lives to TB and close to 28,000 people fall ill with this preventable and curable disease,” WHO added.
History of World Tuberculosis Day
March 24 also marks the day on which Dr Robert Koch announced in 1881 that he had made the discovery of the bacterium which causes TB. This “opened the way towards diagnosing and curing this disease,” said WHO in an official statement on their website. Other than TB, Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch, who was a German physician and microbiologist who identified the causative agents of cholera and anthrax as well. For his research work on TB, Koch received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1905.
Theme of World Tuberculosis Day 2021
The theme of World Tuberculosis Day 2021 is ‘The Clock is Ticking’. The theme has been chosen as it “conveys the sense that the world is running out of time to act on the commitments to end TB made by global leaders,” WHO said in its statement. The organisation also added that as the world faces the challenges posed by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, strides made in control of TB are at great risk.
