Warning as cases of deadly Victorian disease surge for first time in 20 years – the 6 signs you need to know

(WHO) the disease killed nearly 1.6 million people in 2021 - making TB the second leading infectious killer after Covid-19.

This comes as many people were unable to get a diagnosis or receive treatment during Covid lockdowns.

To make matters worse, cases of drug-resistant TB also increased by three per cent between 2020 and 2021, the report said.

In July, Brits were urged to be on the lookout for signs of the deadly Victorian disease after an outbreak at a university in Wales.

Three students at a university campus tested positive for the illness - eight months after coming into close contact with someone who died from the disease.

While in March, health chiefs warned anyone with a cough that's lingered for more than three weeks to seek help as experts predicted a spike in cases following various lockdowns.

Just last week, a small outbreak of diphtheria were confirmed in the UK.

It's a highly contagious disease that affects the skin, nose and throat and without treatment, can be fatal.

Illnesses such as scarlet fever, tuberculosis, measles and mumps have all risen dramatically since Covid began.

Data from the NHS shows that in Yorkshire and the Humber, cases of such conditions are at the highest levels seen since 2017.

Some patients were found to have these bugs - even when they hadn't initially been admitted for them.

Cases were up 23 per cent from those seen in 2020/21.