Tuberculosis

TB is a major cause of human deaths worldwide and the leading cause of death due to an infectious disease after COVID-19 [1]. TB is caused by the bacillus Mycobacterium tuberculosis which is spread from one person to another through the air. M. tuberculosis is estimated to infect approximately one-fourth of the world’s population [2, 3]. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) global tuberculosis report 2021, in 2020, an estimated 9.9 million (8.9–10.9 million) people fell ill with TB worldwide. About 1.5 million people died from TB, including 214,000 people with HIV [1]. The clinical features of tuberculosis vary widely. Patients may present with pulmonary involvement, extrapulmonary involvement (more rarely), or both. Early, accurate diagnosis and treatment of TB are of critical importance in terms of protecting both patient and public health.