Tuberculosis
(abbreviated as
TB
for
tubercle bacillus
or
T
u
b
erculosis) is a common andoften deadlyinfectious diseasecaused bymycobacteria, mainly
.Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs (as pulmonary TB) but can also affect
thecentral nervous system, thelymphatic system, thecirculatory system, the
genitourinary system, thegastrointestinal system, bones, joints, and even theskin. Other
mycobacteria such as
,
, and
also cause tuberculosis, but these species are lesscommon.The typicalsymptomsof tuberculosis are a chronic coughwith blood-tinged sputum,
fever ,night sweats andweight loss. Infection of other organs cause a wide range of
symptoms. Thediagnosisrelies onradiology(commonly chest X-rays), atuberculin skin
test, blood tests, as well as microscopic examination andmicrobiological cultureof
bodily fluids.Tuberculosis treatmentis difficult and requires long courses of multipleantibiotics. Contacts are also screened and treated if necessary.Antibiotic resistanceis agrowing problem in (extensively
)multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis.Prevention relies on
screening programs andvaccination, usually withBacillus Calmette-Guérin(BCG
vaccine).Tuberculosis is spread through the air, when people who have the disease cough, sneezeor spit. One third of theworld's current populationhave been infected with
M.tuberculosis
, and new infections occur at a rate of one per second.
However, most of these cases will not develop the full-blown disease;asymptomatic, latent infection ismost common. About one in ten of these latent infections will eventually progress toactive disease, which, if left untreated, kills more than half of its victims. In 2004,mortality and morbidity statistics included 14.6 million chronic active cases, 8.9 millionnew cases, and 1.6 million deaths, mostly indeveloping countries.
In addition, a risingnumber of people in thedeveloped worldare contracting tuberculosis because their immune systems are compromised byimmunosuppressive drugs,substance abuse, or
AIDS.
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In the past, tuberculosis has been called
consumption
, because it seemed to consume people from within, with a bloody cough,fever, pallor , and long relentless wasting. Other
names included
phthisis
(Greek for consumption) and
phthisis pulmonalis
;
(inadults), affecting the lymphatic system and resulting in swollen neck glands;
tabesmesenterica
, TB of the skin;
wasting disease
;
white plague
, because sufferers appear markedly pale;
king's evil
, because it was believed that a king's touch would heal scrofula; and
, or
gibbus
of thespine and joints.
—now commonly known as
disseminated TB
— occurs when the infection invades the circulatory system resulting in lesions which havethe appearance of milletseeds on X-ray.
Further information:Tuberculosis classification
When the disease becomes active, 75% of the cases are pulmonary TB. Symptoms
include chest pain,coughing up blood, and a productive, prolonged cough for more thanthree weeks. Systemic symptoms include fever, chills,night sweats, appetite loss, weight
loss, pallor, and often a tendency to fatigue very easily.
In the other 25% of active cases, the infection moves from the lungs, causing other kindsof TB. This occurs more commonly inimmunosuppressedpersons and young children.Extrapulmonary infection sites include the pleura, the central nervous systemin
meningitis, thelymphatic systeminscrofulaof the neck, the genitourinary systemin
urogenital tuberculosis, and bones and joints inPott's diseaseof the spine. An especiallyserious form is disseminated TB, more commonly known asmiliary tuberculosis.Although extrapulmonary TB is not contagious, it may co-exist with pulmonary TB,which
is
contagious.
Main article:Mycobacterium tuberculosis
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