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While the most common form of TB infects the lungs, nearly 20% of TB cases develop outside the lungs, infecting the lymph nodes, brain, gut, eyes, or other organs. Just as we have an undercount of people infected with pulmonary TB, the public health challenge of extra-pulmonary TB (EPTB) may be larger than our current estimates.
Diagnostic limitations such as the reliance on sputum-based tests hinders effective detection and management of EPTB, contributing significantly to delayed or missed diagnoses and inadequate treatment. The diverse clinical presentations and the need for invasive procedures further exacerbates the problem, which is why there is a growing need for innovative diagnostic approaches that improve EPTB detection and strengthen the healthcare infrastructure.
India Health Fund catalyzes innovations to strengthen TB diagnostics including EPTB, addressing critical gaps in detection and management to ensure that the disease can be detected rapidly and dealt with effectively. For meaningful change, such innovations must also be accessible to all, which is why IHF-supported innovations include point-of-care solutions that are affordable and accessible and can be deployed at the last mile in low-resource settings.
India Health Fund is registered as Confluence for Health Action and Transformation Foundation (CHATF), a Section 8
charitable company incorporated in India, supported by the Tata Trusts.
