The symptoms of TB disease of the lungs also include coughing, chest pain, and the coughing up of blood. Symptoms of TB disease in other parts of the body depend on the area affected. TB germs are put into the air when a person with TB disease of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes, speaks, or sings. These germs can stay in the air for several hours, depending on the environment. Persons who breathe in the air containing these TB germs can become infected; this is called latent TB infection.
People with latent TB infection have TB germs in their bodies, but they are not sick because the germs are not active. These people do not have symptoms of TB disease, and they cannot spread the germs to others. However, they may develop TB disease in the future. They are often prescribed treatment to prevent them from developing TB disease.
People with TB disease are sick from TB germs that are active, meaning that they are multiplying and destroying tissue in their body. They usually have symptoms of TB disease.
People with TB disease of the lungs or throat are capable of spreading germs to others. They are prescribed drugs that can treat TB disease. A person with latent TB infection cannot spread germs to other people. You do not need to be tested if you have spent time with someone with latent TB infection. However, if you have spent time with someone with TB disease or someone with symptoms of TB, you should be tested. People with TB disease are most likely to spread the germs to people they spend time with every day, such as family members or coworkers.
If you have been around someone who has TB disease, you should go to your doctor or your local health department for tests. There are two tests that can be used to help detect TB infection: a skin test or TB blood test. The Mantoux tuberculin skin test is performed by injecting a small amount of fluid called tuberculin into the skin in the lower part of the arm. A person given the tuberculin skin test must return within 48 to 72 hours to have a trained health care worker look for a reaction on the arm.
There is also no risk of passing on a latent infection to another person. However, a person with latent TB still requires treatment. The CDC estimate that as many as 13 million people in the U. The body may be unable to contain TB bacteria. This is more common when the immune system is weakened due to illness or the use of certain medications.
When this happens, the bacteria can replicate and cause symptoms, resulting in active TB. People with active TB can spread the infection. The risk of developing active TB is higher in:. Here, learn more about pulmonary TB, which primarily affects the lungs.
A person should see a doctor if they experience :. However, a blood test or skin prick test will indicate that they have TB infection. Active TB : A person with TB disease may experience a cough that produces phlegm, fatigue, a fever, chills, and a loss of appetite and weight. Symptoms typically worsen over time, but they can also spontaneously go away and return. TB usually affects the lungs, though symptoms can develop in other parts of the body. This is more common in people with weakened immune systems.
A person with latent TB will have no symptoms, but the infection can show up on tests. People should ask for a TB test if they:. They will also perform a physical examination, which involves listening to the lungs and checking for swelling in the lymph nodes.
However, these cannot indicate whether TB is active or latent. To test for active TB disease, the doctor may recommend a sputum test and a chest X-ray. Find out how to read TB skin test results here. Treatment for latent TB can vary. It may involve taking an antibiotic once a week for 12 weeks or every day for 9 months. Treatment for active TB may involve taking several drugs for 6—9 months.
When a person has a drug resistant strain of TB, the treatment will be more complex. It is essential to complete the full course of treatment, even if symptoms go away. If a person stops taking their medication early, some bacteria can survive and become resistant to antibiotics. In this case, the person may go on to develop drug resistant TB.
They can spread through the air in droplets when a person with pulmonary TB coughs, sneezes, spits, laughs, or talks. Only people with active TB can transmit the infection. However, most people with the disease can no longer transmit the bacteria after they have received appropriate treatment for at least 2 weeks.
The bacteria that cause tuberculosis are spread from person to person through tiny droplets released into the air via coughs and sneezes. Once rare in developed countries, tuberculosis infections began increasing in , partly because of the emergence of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
HIV weakens a person's immune system, so it can't fight the TB germs. In the United States, because of stronger control programs, tuberculosis began to decrease again in But it remains a concern. Many tuberculosis strains resist the drugs most used to treat the disease. People with active tuberculosis must take many types of medications for months to get rid of the infection and prevent antibiotic resistance.
Although your body can harbor the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, your immune system usually can prevent you from becoming sick. For this reason, doctors make a distinction between:. Tuberculosis can also affect other parts of your body, including the kidneys, spine or brain. When TB occurs outside your lungs, signs and symptoms vary according to the organs involved.
For example, tuberculosis of the spine might cause back pain, and tuberculosis in your kidneys might cause blood in your urine. See your doctor if you have a fever, unexplained weight loss, drenching night sweats or a persistent cough.
These are often indications of TB but can also result from other conditions. Also, see your doctor if you think you've been exposed to TB. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people who have an increased risk of tuberculosis be screened for latent TB infection.
This recommendation includes people who:. Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria that spread from person to person through microscopic droplets released into the air. This can happen when someone with the untreated, active form of tuberculosis coughs, speaks, sneezes, spits, laughs or sings. Although tuberculosis is contagious, it's not easy to catch.
You're much more likely to get tuberculosis from someone you live or work with than from a stranger. Most people with active TB who've had appropriate drug treatment for at least two weeks are no longer contagious.
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