title: Tuberculosis in Europe: a problem of drug resistance or much more?
abstract: Tuberculosis has re-emerged as a public health concern in high-income countries in the last few decades. The European region accounts for only 5% of world TB cases. The incidence of new TB cases in Europe varies from very low rates in Scandinavian countries (six to eight cases/100,000 population) to rates as high as 231 cases/100,000 population in Tajikistan; the Russian Federation is eleventh among the 22 high-burden TB countries. The estimated detection rate of new sputum smear-positive pulmonary cases and the treatment success rate in 2007 were poor compared with other WHO regions: 51% of cases were diagnosed and 70% of them completed a full course of anti-TB therapy, which is still a long way from the World Health Assembly targets (detection of 70% of infectious cases and successful treatment of 85% of them). The low success rate is largely attributable to the increasing number of drug-resistant TB cases: Eastern European countries are among those with the highest rates of multidrug-resistant (MDR)-TB (TB resistant to rifampicin and isoniazid) in the world. By the end of September 2009, at least one case of extensively drug-resistant TB (named XDR-TB and defined as a MDR-TB strain with additional resistance to any fluoroquinolone, and to at least one of three injectable drugs used in anti-TB treatment) had been reported by 25 countries in the WHO European Region. In Western Europe, TB continues to cause disease among elderly native-born individuals, although high-risk groups including immigrants, prisoners, HIV-infected persons and drug addicts significantly contribute to the overall burden. Improved TB control in Europe requires a large coordinated effort by all stakeholders, including governments, governmental and non-governmental institutions, as well as the academic and private sectors and affected communities.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, Università degli Studi di Brescia, Piazzale Spedali Civili 1, 25125 Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna C C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.forename: Giovanni B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Migliori
authors.forename: Daniela M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Cirillo
mesh_terms: D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D023801:Directly Observed Therapy; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology; D006292:Health Priorities; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D018088:Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D035862:Vulnerable Populations
chemical_list: D000995:Antitubercular Agents