TUBERCULOSIS ( TB )

What is tuberculosis?

     - Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by bacteria whose scientific name is    Mycobacterium tuberculosis

     -  TB most commonly affects the lungs but also can involve almost any organ of the body. 

     -   Many years ago, this disease was referred to as "consumption" because without effective treatment, these patients often would waste away. 

     -    Today, of course, tuberculosis usually can be treated successfully with antibiotics.

How does a person get TB?

      -  Person can become infected with tuberculosis bacteria when he or she inhales minute particles of infected sputum from the air. 

       -  The bacteria get into the air when someone who has a tuberculosis lung infection coughs, sneezes, shouts, or spits (which is common in some cultures).

       -  Tuberculosis is spread (transmitted) primarily from person to person by breathing infected air during close contact.

What happens to the body when a person gets TB?

        -  When the inhaled tuberculosis bacteria enter the lungs, they can multiply and cause a local lung infection (pneumonia).
        -   The local lymph nodes associated with the lungs may also become involved with the infection and usually become enlarged.
         -   The hilar lymph nodes (the lymph nodes adjacent to the heart in the central part of the chest) are often involved.

How common is TB, and who gets it?

Anyone can get TB, but certain people are at higher risk, including

• people who live with individuals who have an active TB infection,
  
  
• poor or homeless people,
  
  
• foreign-born people from countries that have a high prevalence of TB,
  
  
• nursing-home residents and prison inmates,
  
  
• alcoholics and intravenous drug users,
  
  
• people with diabetes, certain cancers, and HIV infection (the AIDS virus),
  
  
• health-care workers. 

Symptoms of tuberculosis?

      - The usual symptoms that occur with an active TB infection are a generalized tiredness or weakness, weight loss, fever, and night sweats.
      -  If the infection in the lung worsens, then further symptoms can include coughing, chest pain, coughing up of sputum (material from the lungs) and/or blood, and shortness of breath.
      -  If the infection spreads beyond the lungs, the symptoms will depend upon the organs involved.

How does a doctor diagnose tuberculosis?

       -  TB can be diagnosed in several different ways, including chest X-rays, analysis of sputum, and skin tests
       -  Several types of skin tests are used to screen for TB infection.
       -  These so-called tuberculin skin tests include the Tine test and the Mantoux test, also known as the PPD (purified protein derivative) test.