Welcome to the english website of the​​
    German Central Committee against Tuberculosis

    History

    At the end of the 19th century tuberculosis (TB) was the 2nd leading cause of death in Germany with a mortality rate of 249 per 100.000 persons alive in 1895. In the same year, the DZK was founded as „German Central Committee for the Establishment of Sanatoria for Patients with Lung Diseases“. Its mission was the establishment of a central tuberculosis organization to support local initiatives within national TB-control strategies. Prominent supporters at that time were the Imperial Chancellor as honorary president, the Minister of the Interior as president and the special patronage of the Empress Kaiserin Auguste Viktoria.

    Main tasks at that time were the support of the sanatoria movement with organizational and logistic support, education and information of the public about TB, economic and hygienic aid for TB patients and promotion of science and research.

    In 1899 the “International Central Bureau“, the predecessor of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IUATLD) was founded by the DZK. In 1902 the first international tuberculosis Congress was held in Berlin and 1906 Robert Koch joined the Committee.

    DZK Today

    Today Germany is a low incidence country of TB with an Incidence of 6.5/100,000 with 5.429 cases notified in 2018. The proportion of MDR-TB was 3% (118 cases).
    The tasks of the DZK changed with time and today our office is located at the Helios clinic. Our main tasks are coordination of German therapy guidelines and recommendations and information for patients, relatives, medical doctors and public health services about tuberculosis. We are representative and contact person for German health politics regarding TB control measurements in Germany. As well, we conduct scientific research in the field of tuberculosis.

    The structure of the DZK changed. Our president is the current president of the German Respiratory Society. Our general secretary, Prof. Torsten Bauer, is elected by the steering committee, which consists of national TB experts. At the same time, he is heading the department of pneumology of the Helios Klinikum Emil von Behring. Our vice president, Dr. Connie Breuer, is also elected and represents the public health services in Germany. Members of the DZK are the German Ministry of Health (BMG), Robert Koch-Institute (RKI), relevant societies and non-governmental organizations related to TB in Germany, a majority of German federal states, the German association of doctors in public health and various others TB-related institutions.