Consumption, the wasting away of the human body, was one of the early names for Tuberculosis (TB). Before the disease was characterized or recognized, women that had TB were considered the height of beauty in Western Europe. TB was not discovered until 1882 and can run either an acute course or it can come and go, which can sometimes be mistaken for chronic bronchitis. The disease is caused by microbes called mycobacteria. The symptoms typically include weight loss, fevers, chills, night sweats, abdominal pains, diarrhea, and overall weakness. People with HIV are especially susceptible due to their compromised immune systems.
In the 17th century people began urbanizing rapidly in conjunction with the Industrial Revolution. This phenomenon was very prevalent among Native Americans who were herded together on reservations had an excellent chance to get TB, 600,000 Native Americans tested later showed that 36% of the corpses had TB. People with TB migrated into warmer or milder climates hoping that it was the bad air that did them in.
In the movie, Silent Killer, the film crew dives into Swaziland to investigate the rampant TB and MDR-TB cases. With such high rates of HIV present in the population TB does not have a problem finding hosts and victims who are easy pickings for the bacteria. Venezuela is also having issues with TB due to the economic crisis that is ravaging the country. During these times of economic downturn the people move to cities to find work and they crowd together making it easier for the disease to transmit itself through the population.
Drug resistant TB has become a major problem with more and more patients succumbing to the disease due to the health systems inability to treat them. Now patients with MDR or XDR are treated with a drug cocktail whose treatment cycle lasts for 20-30 months and take more than 10 drugs. TB is still rampant nowadays and the WHO and other organizations like it are working to eradicate it.