Preventing and controlling zoonotic tuberculosis: a One Health approach

The expression One Health refers to the unified human and veterinary approach to zoonoses, an approach that used to be identified with Medicine throughout the 20th Century. Zoonotic tuberculosis (TB), a disease due to bacteria of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, is a recognized global public veterinary health problem. The significance of the health and economic threats posed by zoonotic TB has been recognized by several global health agencies, which have called for control and eradication programs for zoonotic TB. The interplay between humans, livestock, wildlife, and ecology in the epidemiology of zoonotic TB make arduous the control of the disease, as such zoonotic TB is the ideal target for the application of the One Health approach. This article argues that a successful One Health response to TB will consider the effects of disease on socio-economic well-being, and allow for addressing the social, cultural and economic conditions that facilitate spread and maintenance of this disease. The One Health approach will also enable the development of disease control programs involving both animal and human populations, fostering the participation of various stakeholders. One Health approach will also allow for expanding scientific knowledge, improve medical education and clinical care, and develop effective disease control programs for both human and animal populations.