Tuberculosis: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment
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| Tuberculosis |
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is a serious infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is transmitted from person to person by droplet infection.
When a person with tuberculosis coughs or sneezes, droplets are produced. These tiny droplets hang in the air for several minutes or hours. When a healthy person inhales these droplets, then he will also develop tuberculosis.
The organ is mainly affected by tuberculosis in the lung. However, it also can affect other body organs such as glands, bones, the abdomen, and the nervous system. Tuberculosis is clinically manifested by fever, chills, night sweats, weight reduction, and changes in chest radiography.
Tuberculosis is a fatal and deadly disease. According to the World Health Organization, it is one of the best 10 reasons for death around the world. Almost 30% of the world’s population (2.0 billion people) is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
However, it can be curable and treatable if it is initially diagnosed and treated with the right choices of antibiotics.
Types Of Tuberculosis
Here, we’ll discuss the two most common types of tuberculosis.
- Latent tuberculosis / Inactive tuberculosis
- Active tuberculosis
- Drug-resistant tuberculosis
Latent Tuberculosis/ Inactive Tuberculosis
In latent tuberculosis, you are asymptomatic. For example, you are diagnosed with a TB infection but the bacteria mycobacterium tuberculosis remains inactive in your body. That’s why it causes no symptoms. If latent tuberculosis /inactive tuberculosis is left untreated, it can turn into an active form of the disease, active tuberculosis. Latent TB is not a contagious disease.
Active Tuberculosis
In this type of tuberculosis, the symptoms of cough, coughing up blood, fever, chills, night sweats, and chest pain appear. It is a contagious disease.
Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis
In most cases, bacteria causing tuberculosis become resistant to the antibiotics used. After some time, some TB germs have fostered the capacity to get by despite meds. This is mostly because individuals don't consume their medications as coordinated or don't finish the course of treatment.
Risk Factors Of Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is more common in low-income and under-developing countries. Tuberculosis is proven to be very deadly and dangerous in people who are HIV-positive. HIV infection is an important risk factor for tuberculosis. Other diseases such as diabetes and end-stage kidney disease also increase the risk for the development of active tuberculosis.
Likewise, certain medicines used for the treatment of psoriasis, lupus, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and Crohn’s disease also put you at higher risk for developing active tuberculosis.
People with weakened immune systems can develop the deadly form of tuberculosis. Intravenous drugs, cigarette smoking, tobacco, or excessive alcohol weaken your immune system.
Causes Of Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is caused by a bacterium, Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is an aerobic, non–spore-forming bacillus. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is referred to as acid-fast bacillus (AFB) because it can resist decolorization by acid alcohol after staining with basic fuchsin.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis can flourish in environments relatively high in oxygen tension. That is the reason it mainly affects the apices of the lung, the renal parenchyma, and the growing ends of bones. Mycobacterium tuberculosis replicates once every 24 hours.
When a person with tuberculosis coughs or sneezes, talks laughs, or spits, droplets are produced. These tiny droplets hang in the air for several minutes or hours. When a healthy person inhales these droplets, then he will also develop tuberculosis.
Only active tuberculosis is contagious. But if a person with active tuberculosis receives effective treatment for at least two weeks, he is no longer contagious.
Symptoms Of Tuberculosis
The symptoms of tuberculosis vary depending upon which part or organ of the body is affected. People diagnosed with active tuberculosis develop a cough, coughing up blood, fever, chills, fatigue, unintentional weight loss, anorexia (loss of appetite), night sweats, and chest pain.
Treatment Of Tuberculosis
There are four fundamental regimens suggested for the treatment of grown-up patients with TB brought about by living beings that are known or ventured to be drug-susceptible.
Multiple drug therapy (MDR) is recommended for a sufficient period to kill the organisms. It also prevents the development of resistance against the strains of mycobacterium tuberculosis.
The most commonly used medications for the treatment of tuberculosis are isoniazid, rifampin, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide.
Second-line drugs used for the treatment of tuberculosis are ethionamide, cycloserine, amikacin, capreomycin, streptomycin, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and p-aminosalicylic acid (PAS).
The treatment plan is different for latent tuberculosis, active tuberculosis, and drug-resistant tuberculosis. The regimen plan is complicated for the treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis.
There are two phases of tuberculosis treatment, the intensive phase, and the continuous phase. The intensive phase consists of eight weeks and the continuous phase consists of sixteen to twenty-eight weeks.
The intensive phase has four drugs, isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol. The continuous phase consists of three drugs, isoniazid, rifampicin, and ethambutol.
When the intensive phase is completed, pyrazinamide should be discontinued. But if a person is resistant to isoniazid, then rifampin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol should be continued for the entire six months.
If the patient with uncomplicated tuberculosis takes or adheres to his medicines for the first eight weeks, organism susceptibility can be assured. After that, he has to continue with the directly observed therapy.
Directly observed therapy (DOT) is the preferred treatment management strategy for all patients with tuberculosis. The aim of DOT is to ensure adherence to the treatment of tuberculosis and the prevention of drug resistance.
DOT can be administered with daily or two- to three-times-per-week treatment. It can be administered to patients in the office or clinic setting, or patients’ homes, schools, or work. You must complete your prescribed regimen plan for the treatment of tuberculosis.
Vaccination Of Tuberculosis
There is a vaccine named Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) that is used for the prevention of tuberculosis (TB) disease. BCG vaccine is the only licensed vaccine for the prevention or treatment of tuberculosis. The BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guérin) vaccine is a live vaccine. BCG vaccine is prepared from the weakened strain of bovine tuberculosis bacillus, Mycobacterium Bovis.
Prevention Of Tuberculosis
If you are diagnosed with active tuberculosis, you must follow preventive measures to protect other people living in your surroundings.
- Cover your face during coughing or sneezing.
- Good ventilation, natural light, or UV light are very effective in killing the bacteria, mycoplasma tuberculosis. So, try to maintain these things in the room where you are living during the treatment.
- Wash your hands with antibacterial soap after coughing or sneezing.
- Try to avoid using public transport.
- You must complete your tuberculosis regimen plan.