Cases of childhood tuberculosis have increased by 10% in Europe, according to a new report the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Children under 15 years old now account for 4.3% of cases of this bacterial lung disease.
This rise represents an additional 650 cases among children in Europe between 2022 and 2023. In one out of five cases, it is unclear whether the treatment was effective, the WHO reports.
In 2023, the number of people diagnosed and treated for tuberculosis began to increase again. This follows an unprecedented decline in 2020 due to disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the WHO European region, which covers 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia, over 172,000 new or recurring tuberculosis cases were reported in 2023. This figure is similar to that of 2022.
In the European Economic Area, which includes EU countries, Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein, nearly 37,000 people were diagnosed with tuberculosis.
This is an increase from the 35,000 cases reported the previous year.
