Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that usually affects the lungs. Compared with other diseases caused by a single infectious agent, tuberculosis is the second biggest killer, globally.

Fast facts on tuberculosis

Here are some key points about tuberculosis. More detail and supporting information is in the main article.

• The World Health Organization estimates that 9 million people a year get sick with TB, with 3 million of these “missed” by health systems
• TB is among the top 3 causes of death for women aged 15 to 44
• TB symptoms (cough, fever, night sweats, weight loss, etc.) may be mild for many months, and people ill with TB can infect up to 10-15 other people through close contact over the course of a year
• TB is an airborne pathogen, meaning that the bacteria that cause TB can spread through the air from person to person

Types of TB:

Latent TB – the bacteria remain in the body in an inactive state. They cause no symptoms and are not contagious, but they can become active.

Active TB – the bacteria do cause symptoms and can be transmitted to others.

About one-third of the world’s population is believed to have latent TB. There is a 10 percent chance of latent TB becoming active, but this risk is much higher in people who have compromised immune systems, i.e., people living with HIV or Malnutrition or people who smoke.

Diagnosis of tuberculosis

To check for TB, a doctor will use a stethoscope to listen to the lungs and check for swelling in the lymph nodes. They will also ask about symptoms and medical history as well as assessing the individual’s risk of exposure to TB. The most common diagostic test for TB is a skin test where a small injection of PPD tuberculin, an extract of the TB bacterium, is made just below the inside forearm.

The injection site should be checked after 2-3 days, and, if a hard, red bump has swollen up to a specific size, then it is likely that TB is present. Unfortunately, the skin test is not 100 percent accurate and has been known to give incorrect positive and negative readings. However, there are other tests that are available to diagnose TB. Blood tests, chest X-rays, and sputum tests can all be used to test for the presence of TB bacteria and may be used alongside a skin test.

MDR-TB is more difficult to diagnose than regular TB. It is also difficult to diagnose regular TB in children.

What causes Tuberculosis?

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium causes TB. It is spread through the air when a person with TB (whose lungs are affected) coughs, sneezes, spits, laughs, or talks.

TB is contagious, but it is not easy to catch. The chances of catching TB from someone you live or work with are much higher than from a stranger. Most people with active TB who have received appropriate treatment for at least 2 weeks are no longer contagious. 

Since antibiotics began to be used to fight TB, some strains have become resistant to drugs. Multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) arises when an antibiotic fails to kill all of the bacteria, with the surviving bacteria developing resistance to that antibiotic and often others at the same time.

MDR-TB is treatable and curable only with the use of very specific anti-TB drugs, which are often limited or not readily available. In 2012, around 450,000 people developed MDR-TB.

Symptoms of tuberculosis

While latent TB is symptomless, the symptoms of active TB include the following:

• Coughing, sometimes with mucus or blood
• Chills
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Loss of weight
• Loss of appetite
• Night sweats

Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/8856.php

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