Tuberculosis is one of the oldest scourges to mankind.
Today, one-third of the world population is infected with TB, though TB infection is not synonymous with active TB disease. The first antibiotic to treat advanced TB disease, streptomycin, was developed in 1944. Today, an estimated 10-15 million people in the U.S. are infected but do not have active TB disease. Many people infected with TB are foreign-born and were infected in their country of origin. It is estimated that there are 8-10 million new cases of TB and three million deaths each year.