San Diego is gearing up for World Tuberculosis Day this Sunday, with County Public Health leading the charge to illuminate the perils of this curable and preventable lung disease, as detailed in a recent statement from the County News Center.
The vital occasion falls on March 24 as a nod to Dr. Robert Koch's pivotal discovery of the TB germ back in 1882, and the County along with its team at the San Diego County TB Elimination Initiative is sparing no effort to stamp out the contagion in the region by collaborating with healthcare providers, schools and community organizations to spread the word about prevention and treatment. According to the County News Center, the TB Elimination Initiative's Community of Practice has been toasted as a 2024 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention TB Elimination Champion, a testament to their unwavering dedication and significant strides in tackling the health threat.
"TB is a preventable and curable disease, and it takes all of us being aware of its symptoms in order to continue making strides toward its elimination,” Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten, M.D., emphasized, recognizing the indispensable role of communal efforts in this endeavor. Symptoms of active TB include a persistent cough, fever, night sweats, and unexpected weight loss, while latent TB infection doesn't show symptoms but still poses risks if unchecked.
In 2023, San Diego County reported 243 TB cases, a number mirroring the average incidents from 2015-2019, indicating a return to pre-pandemic levels in terms of infection rates, certainly, this highlights the importance of the County's proactive strategies in managing the disease which include running a dedicated TB Clinic at the North Central Public Health Center and providing tests at various regional public health centers across the County. Fresh from hosting the San Diego County TB Prevention Education and Community Engagement Summit, the County is seeing red—but in a good way. The County Administration Center will don a crimson hue joining a worldwide show of solidarity on World TB Day, with other landmarks across the continent and down in Australia flashing red to mark the occasion and foster global awareness.
