TB or not TB, that is the question

By Andrew Stackpool

TB is a curable disease caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis germ. It is spread when a person with TB in their lungs or throat coughs, sneezes or speaks, sending germs into the air.

When other people breathe in these germs they can become infected. It can damage a person’s lungs or other parts of the body and cause serious illness.

Most people get TB germs from someone they spend a lot of time with, for example, family members, friends or close co-workers.

TB infection means the TB germs are in the body but they are “inactive”.

After TB germs enter the body, in most cases, the body’s defences control the germs. However, these germs can stay alive inside the body for years in an inactive state.

While TB germs are inactive they can not do any damage, and they can’t spread to other people.

The person is infected but not sick. For most (90 per cent of people) the germs will always be inactive.

The only way a person will know if they have been infected is if they have a positive result to a special skin test (tuberculin skin test or Mantoux test).

It is possible that even after many years, inactive TB germs may become active when the body’s defences are weakened.

This may be due to ageing, a serious illness, stressful event, drug or alcohol misuse, HIV infection (the virus that causes AIDS) or other conditions.

When TB germs become active, they begin multiplying and can damage the lungs or other parts of the body. If the TB germs become active, TB disease can develop.

Only about 10 per cent of people who are infected with TB germs will develop tuberculosis.

TB can attack any part of the body, but the lungs are the most common site. People with TB may have some or all of the following symptoms:

• a cough that lasts for more than three weeks;
  
• fevers;
  
• unexplained weight loss;
  
• night sweats;
  
• always feeling tired; and
  
• loss of appetite.
  

Sometimes, a person with TB can cough up blood stained sputum. Some people with active TB disease may only have mild symptoms.

The common tests for TB are:

• The Mantoux test (tuberculin skin test) shows whether a person is likely to have been infected.
  
• A chest X-ray shows whether TB has affected the lungs; and
  
• A sputum test shows if TB germs are present in the sputum coughed up.
  

TB infection is treated by a course of tablets (preventive therapy) or monitored with regular chest X-rays.
TB disease is treated by a combination of special antibiotics for at least six months.

People with TB can be cured if they complete the treatment.

People with TB can continue treatment and normal activities while they are not infectious.

If people with TB do not take their medication, they can become seriously ill, and may even die.
People with TB of the lungs or throat can be infectious to others, while people with TB in other parts of the body
are not infectious.

In most cases, after two weeks of taking medication, patients with TB disease will no longer spread germs.

Household items such as cutlery, crockery, glasses, sheets, clothes or telephones do not spread TB, so it is not necessary to use separate household items.

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