International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease

The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) is an organization headquartered in Paris with the stated goals to "bring innovation, expertise, solutions and support to address health challenges in low- and middle-income populations". The antecedents of the UATLD date to an 1867 meeting to discuss the tuberculosis plague, and include the former Central Bureau for the Prevention of Tuberculosis and the International Union Against Tuberculosis (IUAT).

Early pioneers were Robert Koch, Sir John Crofton and Karel Styblo. According to The Lancet, in the 70s, Styblo "harnessed the meager resources of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease and showed that, contrary to expert opinion, tuberculosis could be controlled in extremely poor countries: beginning in Tanzania, one of the poorest of them all". In 1982, it instituted World Tuberculosis Day, commemorating 100 years from the date when Robert Koch discovered cause of tuberculosis. The expanded name and mission were adopted in 1986.

According to its website, The Union has twelve offices around the world serving Africa, the Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and South-East Asia, with a focus on tuberculosis, HIV, lung health and non-communicable diseases, tobacco control and research.

The Union organises the annual Union World Conference on Lung Health, the largest annual meeting on lung health in the world. The most recent conference was the 45th Union World Conference on Lung Health, which was held in Barcelona, Spain, from 28 October - 1 November 2014. The 46th Union World Conference on Lung Health will be held in Cape Town, South Africa from 2–6 December 2015.

The Union publishes two scientific journals; the International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IJTLD) and Public Health Action (PHA). The IJTLD is distributed to over 165 countries world-wide and has an impact factor of 2.76. The IJTLD is the reference for clinical research and epidemiological studies on tuberculosis. It is also the only peer-reviewed journal dedicated to lung health, including articles on non-tuberculosis-related respiratory diseases such as asthma, acute respiratory infection, COPD and the hazards of tobacco and pollution. Public Health Action is The Union's open-access online journal which is published quarterly. PHA addresses the need for showcasing operational research that addresses issues in health systems and services and aims to provide new knowledge to improve access, equity, quality and efficiency of health systems and services.

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