Update on "COVID-19 No Longer the Leading Cause of Death from Infectious Diseases"
There seems to be a misconception about my previous post with multiple people on Reddit believing this is due to COVID-19 making us all immunocompromised. There is no such evidence.
The WHO cites TB underfunding as a major issue:
Global funding for TB prevention and care decreased further in 2023 and remains far below target. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which bear 98% of the TB burden, faced significant funding shortages. Only US$ 5.7 billion of the US$ 22 billion annual funding target was available in 2023, equivalent to only 26% of the global target.
The WHO also describes these risk factors:
A significant number of new TB cases are driven by 5 major risk factors: undernutrition, HIV infection, alcohol use disorders, smoking (especially among men), and diabetes. Tackling these issues, along with critical determinants like poverty and GDP per capita, requires coordinated multisectoral action.
While the WHO does cite disruptions in TB services due to COVID-19, this is not the same as individuals being more susceptible to TB because of SARS-CoV-2.
This follows substantial national and global efforts to recover from COVID-related disruptions to TB services. The coverage of TB preventive treatment has been sustained for people living with HIV and continues to improve for household contacts of people diagnosed with TB.
/g