The World Health Organization (WHO) reported the number of people at risk from trachoma, the world's leading infectious cause of blindness, fell from 125 million in 2022 to 115.7m in 2023.
In 2022, 129,224 people were managed for trachomatous trichiasis (TT) worldwide, an 87% increase from the 69,266 managed the year before. An estimated 73% of 2022’s global TT surgeries were performed in Ethiopia, accounting for 52% of the disease’s global burden. However, the number of people who received antibiotics for trachoma reduced from 64.6m in 2021 to 32.8m in 2022, which WHO attributed largely to a reduction in the availability of donated azithromycin.
The WHO-endorsed SAFE (surgery, antibiotics, facial cleanliness, environmental improvement) strategy in trachoma-endemic countries has contributed to a 92% reduction in the number of people at risk of trachoma since 2002. The number of people requiring TT surgery has likewise decreased by 80% – from 7.6m in 2002 to 1.5m in April 2023.
In July 2023 Iraq became the world’s 50th nation to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem, marking the halfway point of the 100-country target WHO set for 2030.
