Tuberculosis in South Africa: Literature Review
South Africa has the third highest burden of disease in the world, after India and China, with an estimated incidence of 450 000 cases of active TB in 2013, an increase of 400% over the last 15 years (WHO, 2014). An estimated 60-73% of the 450 000 incident cases have both HIV and TB infection.
The incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant TB are increasing and South Africa has the second highest number of reported multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) cases globally (NDOH, 2014 and HST, 2014). TB remains the leading cause of death in South Africa, contributing to 12% of deaths in 2009 (StatsSA, 2014).
This desktop review of Tuberculosis in South Africa was commissioned by the Soul City Institute of Health and Development Communication (SC IHDC). The aim is to identify, collect, compile and synthesize the published and grey literature relating to the nature and extent of TB infection in the country, including policies and legislation.
