Anna Vassall's dissertation examines examines the costs and cost-effectiveness of implementing tuberculosis control.

Tuberculosis is a leading cause of ill-health and death among the adult population of low and middle income countries. Vássall's thesis addresses ways to improve prevention and treatment of tuberculosis. It finds that while the World Health Organization recommended strategy is feasible and cost-effective, economic and institutional rigidities need to be better addressed to achieve success.

Vassall also finds that tuberculosis control may be enhanced with several of the new cost-effective technologies currently being developed to tackle drug resistance. Furthermore, the thesis emphasizes the importance of mitigating the costs for the poor of accessing tuberculosis and HIV treatment. Finally, it highlights the weakness of the current global estimates of the health systems costs of expanding both TB and HIV services. More attention will need to be given to these areas if the Millennium Development Goals relating to health are to be reached by 2015.

Promotors: Prof. Jacques Van de Gaag, Prof. Martien Borgdorff