World
Tuberculosis Day is being
observed
today. The day is designed to build public awareness about the global
resurgence of tuberculosis and efforts to eliminate the disease.
Today tuberculosis causes the deaths of about
1.7 million people each year, mostly in the Third World countries . The theme
for this year is "Reach the three million A TB test, treatment and cure
for all". On this day we spoke to
the Director of REACH NGO, Dr Nalini Krishnan about the disease and its
preventive measure.
March
24 commemorates the day in 1882 when Dr
Robert Koch astounded the scientific community by announcing to a small
group of scientists at the University of Berlin's Institute of Hygiene that he
had discovered the cause of tuberculosis, the TB bacillus. According to Koch’s colleague, Paul Ehrlich, “At this
memorable session, Koch appeared before the public with an announcement which
marked a turning-point in the story of a virulent human infectious disease. In
clear, simple words Koch explained the aetiology of tuberculosis with
convincing force, presenting many of his microscope slides and other pieces of
evidence.” At the time of Koch's announcement in Berlin, TB was raging through
Europe and the Americas, causing the death of one out of every seven people.
Koch's discovery opened the way toward diagnosing and curing tuberculosis.