In 1993, the World Health Organisation declared it a global emergency. Figures from the United States showed that during the 1960's the prevalence of TB was decreasing. At this time compliance with drug regimes and reporting decreased. This allowed for the emergence of resistant TB strains. Because of this failure to report, the upturn in cases was missed.
Tuberculosis is an airborne disease.
With treatment the disease can be cured but without treatment, the possible outcomes range from recovery to death. It is not certain why people respond in different ways to this bacterium and more research is needed. In global terms, there are one billion people infected with tuberculosis at any one time. Eight million new cases arise annually making a prevalence of 16 million cases. However, despite these grim figures, even without the influence of treatment and immunisation, the incidence is not as high as it was in the last century.