Doctors demand prevention measures as TB numbers surge

Irish doctors have called for a range of public health measures to tackle a resurgence of tuberculosis (TB) after one national referral centre recorded a 74% increase in cases during a four-year period.

A team of medics from the Department of Respiratory Medicine at St. James’s Hospital in Dublin reported a 73.8% spike in TB presentations between 2021 and 2024, describing the trend as “concerning”.

They noted that TB has re-emerged as the leading global cause of death from a single infectious agent, overtaking HIV, malaria, and Covid-19; as progress on reducing mortality has “slowed considerably”.

The doctors said elimination of TB in Ireland remains “achievable” but requires renewed policy commitment, resource allocation, and vigilance within clinical and public health systems.

They called for strong contact-tracing, robust national surveillance, targeted screening of high-risk populations, ready access to rapid diagnostics, and comprehensive treatment-adherence programmes.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) has also noted climbing TB infections in recent years, with notifications rising from 224 in 2022 to 288 in 2024.

Writing in the Irish Medical Journal, the team of doctors from St. James’s Hospital said shifting global migration patterns are reflected in Ireland’s TB demographics, with much higher incidence among those not born in the country.

They said symptoms of the disease are becoming more diverse, with pulmonary TB – affecting the lungs – accounting for only 55%-65% of cases each year. The disease was detected in 20 distinct anatomical sites at the hospital between 2021 and 2024.

This changing epidemiology is being shaped by “convergence of global migration” as well as post-pandemic healthcare disruptions, according to the medics, posing new diagnostic challenges.

While Ireland remains a low-incidence country by European standards, stagnation in the reduction of cases is running counter to World Health Organisation (WHO) strategies for the elimination of the disease by 2030, they said.

“As global migration and social complexity continue to influence disease patterns, TB control must remain an active national priority rather than a historical success story,” the authors added.