Tuberculosis Control in the Republic of Korea

Cho, Kyung Sook

doi:2018.0.0.e2018036

Editorial

Epidemiology and Health 2018;e2018036.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2018036 [Accepted] Published online August 2, 2018.

Tuberculosis Control in the Republic of Korea

Kyung Sook Cho

Ministry of Heatlh and Welfare, Sejong, Korea

Correspondence Kyung Sook Cho ,Tel: 0442023220, Fax: 0442023956, Email: kyungsookcho@nate.com

Received: May 27, 2018 Accepted after revision: August 2, 2018

Abstract

The TB incidence rate and mortality rate in the Republic of Korea are 77 and 5.2 per 100,000 people respectively (2016), which are the highest among the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. Recently, the Republic of Korea’s TB incidence decreased dramatically among people in their teens and twenties. This is largely attributed to the contact investigation efforts in targeting schools over the past few years. However, the TB incidence in the elderly still remains high and is even increasing compared to the past 10 years. Older persons account for 42% of all TB cases and 82% of deaths due to TB. On the other hand, the Republic of Korea’s TB treatment success rate has gradually increased due to various programs, such as Control of noncompliance, insurance coverage for TB diagnosis and treatment, and TB public-private mix models. This study suggests that policy makers should focus their efforts on the policies with priorities to achieve a significant reduction in TB incidence based on the 2nd National Strategic Plan for Tuberculosis Control (2018-2022).

Keywords: Tuberculosis; incidence; mortality; Latent Tuberculosis Infection(LTBI); Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis(MDR-TB); TB control