Traveler Alert: Europe Experiencing High Rate of TB

While the rate of tuberculosis (TB) in the United States has dropped to 4.8 per 100,000 people, such is not the case in tourist-heavy Europe. In fact, many European countries are seeing a surge in drug-resistant form of TB, causing concern for residents as well as travelers.

Tuberculosis was a leading cause of death in the 1800s, when one out of every seven people died from the disease. The discovery of the cause, TB bacillus, in 1882 led to the development of a vaccine in the early 1900s.  

The vaccine, administered to infants and children, has helped to eliminate much of the disease, at least in the industrialized world. Until 1993…when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency due to the increase in TB.

The rapid rise of one new infection per second continues yet today, although in reality only about one in ten people who become infected with the TB bacteria actually develop the full-blown disease.

Those who do become infected are put on a regimen of drugs that can last as long as two years. Many spend significant time in isolation, to stem the spread of infection. But many discontinue the medication prematurely, which allows the disease to develop resistance. 

WHO says the nine countries with the world's highest rates of drug resistance in new tuberculosis patients are in Europe. And London has been pinpointed as having the highest rate of any capital city. Not good news for international travelers.

There are approximately 81,000 new cases of drug-resistant TB a year in Europe, although many countries are failing to diagnose it. Typically a disease that comes from underdeveloped or third-world countries, it is most often seen in immigrants. But this is no longer the case, with middle-class, white collar Europeans finding themselves a victim of TB.

WHO, along with European health agencies, are sounding the alarm: asking doctors to be more vigilant in their patient exams, increasing diagnosis and treatment, and providing public service campaigns. In December of last year, WHO unveiled a new rapid test that can be administered while you wait. Additionally, it detects drug-resistant strains of the disease, which helps healthcare professionals determine a course of treatment.

This doesn’t mean you have to postpone or cancel your travel plans, but be aware of the symptoms while traveling and upon returning home. TB is not always readily apparent and can be asymptomatic for a period of time.

An airborne disease, when TB multiplies enough and flares up in a patient, 75 percent of the cases are of a pulmonary (lung-related) nature.  Symptoms vary from constant chest pain to a persistent cough for over three weeks sometimes including blood, also swollen eyes, fevers, night sweats, chills, weight loss, and the ability to get fatigued easily.