Los Angeles County has registered a decline in Tuberculosis cases from 2,100 in 1992 to 706 cases in 2009.

This was announced by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH). The department also claimed that most of the cases were contracted overseas. The department maintained that tuberculosis affects millions of people across the globe.

However, despite the lowering of the number of cases in Los Angeles, the city is vulnerable to fresh cases. This is owing to the fact that LA remains the locus of international travel and immigration.

Tuberculosis is not a thing of the past, but affects millions of people across the globe every year, said the department. Drug resistant and extreme drug resistant T. B. also increase the threat of the disease.

Health officials claim that the drop in cases does not imply that the city is impervious to graver forms of the disease.

LACDPH Director Jonathan Fielding says, "Through rapid diagnostic methods, timely reporting of cases to Public Health and appropriate care for all individuals, we can work toward one day eradicating this disease and its stronger forms".