I’m fighting HIV/AIDS. Why should I care about TB? Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading killer of people living with HIV, causing one in four deaths. TB and HIV form a lethal combination, each speeding the other’s progress. In order to win the fight against HIV, we must win the fight against TB. 1 HOW DOES TB AFFECT PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS? HOW DO WE PROTECT PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS FROM TB? WHAT CAN I DO TO STOP TB AND PROTECT PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS? TB is an airborne disease that often attacks the lungs. One-third of the world’s population has latent TB.2 When exposed to TB, most healthy people are able to fight TB and have ‘latent’ TB, which means they are infected, but not sick or contagious. The best way to protect against TB is to prevent it through: ‣ infection control in health clinics (can be as simple as opening a window) ‣ medicine to treat latent TB ‣ early initiation of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) to treat HIV ‣ joint testing and treatment for TB and HIV 1. Educate yourself and your community about TB. 2. Integrate TB services into HIV, reproductive health, and family planning programs. 3. Evaluate programs that address TB-HIV and share best practices. 4. Engage policymakers about TB and its impact on people living with HIV/AIDS. 5. Advocate to raise the visibility of TB as an HIV/AIDS issue. 6. Become a champion on TB-HIV. Visit www.action.org to find out how! When a person’s immune system is weakened, active TB develops, making people living with HIV 20 to 30 times more vulnerable to TB.3 TB is often fatal without treatment. TB is curable. No one should die of TB. Increasing access to TB screening and treatment is imperative in the fight against HIV/AIDS. New technology – GeneXpert – can diagnose TB in people living with HIV in two hours. 1. World Health Organization (2011). WHO TB/HIV Facts 2011. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/tb/challenges/hiv/factsheet_hivtb_2011.pdf 2. World Health Organization (2012). Tuberculosis Fact Sheet. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs104/en/ 3. World Health Organization (2011). WHO TB/HIV Facts 2011. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/tb/challenges/hiv/factsheet_hivtb_2011.pdf ACTION IS A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP OF ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS WORKING TO INFLUENCE POLICY AND MOBILIZE RESOURCES TO FIGHT DISEASES OF POVERTY AND IMPROVE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES. No matter who you are or where you live, you can join us in persuading leaders to become champions for global health. ‣ WRITE A LETTER TO YOUR GOVERNMENT. ‣ MEET WITH YOUR MEMBER OF CONGRESS OR PARLIAMENT. ‣ RAISE AWARENESS IN YOUR COMMUNITY. ‣ EXPRESS YOUR OPINION IN YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER. ‣ PRODUCE A VIDEO OR WRITE A BLOG. ‣ PARTICIPATE IN COMMUNITY EVENTS. LEARN MORE AND JOIN OUR NETWORK AT WWW.ACTION.ORG. ACTION IS A GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP OF ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS WORKING TO INFLUENCE POLICY AND MOBILIZE RESOURCES TO FIGHT DISEASES OF POVERTY AND IMPROVE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES.