Tuberculosis (TB): Monitoring

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Number of cases of tuberculosis in Canada

In 2021 there were 1,829 cases of active tuberculosis reported in Canada. People born outside Canada and Indigenous Peoples accounted for the majority of cases. In 2021, among active tuberculosis cases with available information on place of birth and population group, 1,055 were people born outside of Canada and 321 were Canadian-born, of whom 232 were Indigenous Peoples. In terms of percentages, this corresponds to:

  • 76.7% of active tuberculosis were reported in people born outside Canada
  • Among those born in Canada, 16.9% were reported in Indigenous Peoples and 3.6% were reported in non-Indigenous persons.

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Rate of tuberculosis in Canada

The rate of active tuberculosis in Canada is among the lowest in the world. Canada experienced a steady decrease in the rate of tuberculosis between the 1940s and 1980s. Since then, the annual rates have remained about the same.

In 2021, the rate of active tuberculosis in Canada was 4.8 per 100,000 population. The rates were highest among Inuit (135.1 per 100,000), First Nations (16.1 per 100,000) and people born outside of Canada (12.3 per 100,000). 

How Canada monitors tuberculosis

Provincial and territorial public health authorities voluntarily submit data on all new and re-treatment cases of active tuberculosis disease in Canada. The federal government uses these data to report on national tuberculosis trends annually.

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