In 2022, an estimated 1.2 million people died around the world from COVID-19, while 1.3 million people died from tuberculosis (TB), according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
As cases of the COVID-19 virus and related deaths dwindle, tuberculosis, caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, has reclaimed its spot as the deadliest infectious disease.
TB is particularly endemic to eight countries, namely Bangladesh, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and the Philippines. More than two-thirds of the world’s TB sufferers are from these countries.
