In 2002, 2 million people died worldwide from TB. The WHO prospects lethal cases to increase to 8 million by 2015. TB kills more youth and adults than any other single infectious agent in the world today. The developing world is the worst affected with 95 percent of all TB cases and 98 percent of TB deaths. In sub Sahara Africa, the combination of TB and HIV result in the highest casualty rate per capita, worldwide. Left untreated, a person with active TB will infect on average 10 to 15 persons a year. The low detection rate of TB cases, which is reportedly only about 1/3, is one of the main factors of the spread of TB. The main reason for this low detection rate is the lack of a cheap and reliable diagnostic tool that can handle big volumes of samples.

Currently, TB cases are detected through sputum smear microscopy, which is a slow and costly process that has not changed much over 100 years. Moreover, the test is not very accurate. Even in optimal circumstances, it only reaches a 70% detection rate. Many countries' chances to successfully fight TB in the future depend very much on their capacity to detect TB cases quickly and accurately.

HeroRAT detecting Tuberculosis

See how HeroRATS are fighting tuberculosis, view the World Health Organization's TB Global Fact Sheet to learn more about the global situation, or adopt a HeroRAT today to help.