Northeastern News One of the world’s most deadly infectious diseases, tuberculosis requires months of treatment. Tuberculosis, one of the world’s most deadly infectious diseases, has been reported in a handful of cases in Maine, North Carolina and California in recent weeks.
Less transmissible than other respiratory illnesses such as the flu and COVID-19, tuberculosis is curable with up to nine months of antibiotic treatment for active cases.
Northeastern University infectious disease and global health experts Brandon Dionne, Larry Han and Tamara Jimah explain what causes tuberculosis, how it spreads and why it requires months of medication to fully eradicate it.
Trends in case counts
While tuberculosis has been trending generally downward since 1993, when the U.S. had more than 25,000 cases, recent years have seen an upward blip.
Case counts surged 15.6% from 2022 to 2023, going from 8,332 to 9,633 cases.
A provisional report from the CDC released in March says cases continued to increase into 2024, climbing 8% to 10,347 cases in one year.