Tuberculosis deaths rose during pandemic, reversing years of decline - WHO

FILE PHOTO: A logo is pictured outside a building of the World Health Organization (WHO) during an executive board meeting on update on the coronavirus outbreak, in Geneva, Switzerland, February 6, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

(Reuters) - Global deaths from tuberculosis are estimated to have increased between 2019 and 2021, reversing years of decline as the COVID-19 pandemic severely derailed efforts to tackle the disease, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

Global efforts to tackle deadly diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria have suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. The health crisis has particularly hit the response to TB and led countries to fall behind in meeting targets to curb the infectious disease.