Tuberculosis: A Trip Through the Lungs

Tuberculosis has long been a disease that the human culture has been dealing with which entails significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. With dealing with such a horrific disease over the years, discoveries and evolution on the appropriate ways to contain, diagnose, and challengingly treat the disease has changed. One of the most concerning complications of this worldwide public health issue is the ability for it to quickly spread in high populated areas while becoming ever more resistant to forms of treatment not available in all locations around the world. This is a serious public

Tuberculosis is most of the feared and widespread that has harassed humans. Tuberculosis is a disease that affects the lungs and other organs too. This is a very serious disease that can cause death and the worse part is that this disease travels to one person to another. In the book, Know about Tuberculosis, a boy who has tuberculosis sneezed on another boy named Kevin who did not automatically catch tuberculosis, but the terms have taken root. According to the book, Know about Tuberculosis, “In the United States, about ten to fifteen million people are infected with this disease, but only ten percent of people are infected; however doctors assume that the battle against tuberculosis is increasing around the world.” Tuberculosis is among the major concerns for the World Health Organization due to its contagious nature.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection in which nodules referred to as tubercles grows in the bodies tissues, especially on the lungs. Tuberculosis is a

Tuberculosis is a disease of an infectious nature caused by a bacterium known as mycobacterium tuberculosis. The disease spreads through the air. People with the disease can spread it to susceptible people through coughing, sneezing, talking or spitting. It mainly affects the lungs and other parts such as the lymph nodes and kidneys can also be affected. The symptoms for TB are fatigue, coughing, night sweats, weight loss and fever. One third of the population of the world is affected with mycobacterium tuberculosis. The rate of infection is estimated to be one person per second. About 14 million people in the world are infected with active tuberculosis. Drug resistant TB has been recorded to be a serious public health hazard in many countries. Resistant strains have developed making it difficult to treat the disease. TB has caused millions of death mainly in people living with HIV/AIDS ADDIN EN.CITE Ginsberg19981447(Ginsberg, 1998)1447144717Ginsberg, Ann M.The Tuberculosis Epidemic: Scientific Challenges and OpportunitiesPublic Health Reports (1974-)Public Health Reports (1974-)128-13611321998Association of Schools of Public Health00333549http://www.jstor.org/stable/4598234( HYPERLINK l "_ENREF_3" o "Ginsberg, 1998 #1447" Ginsberg, 1998). The World Health Organization came up with the DOTS (Directly Observed, Therapy, Short course) strategy. The approach involves diagnosing cases and treating patients with drugs for about 6-8

Once believed to be easily treated and prevented, Tuberculosis (TB) has recently been making a steady comeback. Previous to modern medicine, TB claimed millions of victims, spreading from person to person like wildfire. Around the 17th-18th centuries, the “White Plague” took the lives of 1 in 5 adults (20%) in Europe and North America (Iseman, 1994). However, as technological advances progressed, this seemingly ferocious viral disease became a primal, insignificant thing of the past. But, in the nature of all bacteria, TB has, in the recent years, mutated to become progressively drug resistant. Why is Tuberculosis coming back with a vengeance? Well, the answer’s quite simple. TB has done an amazing job of standing in the corner and

Tuberculosis is caused by the bacteria “Mycobacterium Tuberculosis” and is mainly causes infection of the lungs (WHO, 2016). Its mode of transmission is airborne, so it can be passed on by inhalation of airborne droplets which carrying the bacteria, when an infected patient coughs, sneezes, or spits the TB germs into the air (WHO, 1026). Among the symptoms of active TB are: cough with sputum and blood, chest pains, weakness, fever and night sweats (WHO, 2016). Most at risk to get the TB infection are people with weakened immune system such as people who are suffering from chronic diseases such as diabetes mellitus, severe kidney disease, silicosis and especially HIV infection (CDC, 2016). Children and Tobacco users are also at greater risk to fall ill with TB.

According to the World Health Organization, tuberculosis (TB) is the number two killer worldwide due to a single infectious agent (WHO, 2017). In 2015, 10.4 million new cases have been identified and 1.8 million people have died from this disease (WHO, 2017). TB is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium TB, and the majority of TB deaths occur in low and middle-income countries. This disease is curable and preventable, but the lack of access to proper healthcare and medication administration makes it a concern for the most of the world’s population. TB is an airborne disease that can transmit when an infected person coughs, sneezes, spits, laughs, or talks. The majority of TB cases can be cured when the right medications are available and

Active disease is diagnosed with chest x-ray, skin or blood tests and sputum smears. Cat scans and MRI’s can also be used for diagnosing. Treatment for active non-resistant TB consists of the use of a two drug therapy, generally isoniazid and rifampicin. Cure rate for this strain of TB can be over 90%. Treatment for active TB is done for a minimum of six months. As a result of individuals incompletely finishing their recommended dose of anti-tubercular

Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease that affects the lungs and other parts of the body. It can be fatal in late cases. TB is caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a bacterium that usually affects the victim’s lungs and is spread through the air. TB spreads from one community or country to another as people travel or through immigration to new areas. Today’s modern world of travel makes health and healthcare a global issue. Although TB rates are decreasing in the United States, the disease is becoming more common in many parts of the world. In addition, the prevalence of drug-resistant TB is increasing worldwide.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that affects a persons lungs and has the ability to be life threatening. The bacteria that causes TB is known as Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) (https://www.cdc.gov/tb/topic/basics/). The TB bacteria is spread from person to person when an infected person coughs or sneezes and minute droplets enter the air. Approximately one third of people throughout the world have latent TB

Tuberculosis has been with us since ancient times (Lawn & Zumla, 2011). The earliest recorded date of its presence in humans have been found in Egyptian mummies dating from 3000-2400BC (Zink, et al., 2003). Also known as consumption or white plague, it ravaged the lives in North America and Europe in the 18th and 19th century (McCarthy, 2009) . Finally the microbe that caused the disease, tuberculosis was discovered by Dr. Robert Koch, a German microbiologist, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine for his findings (Nobel Prize).

Tuberculosis (TB) is a chronic bacterial infection that affects millions of people globally. It is a contagious disease that is spread through the air, and it usually affects the lungs. It is transmitted from person to person through droplets from the respiratory tract of those who are already infected with the disease. Some who are infected with the bacteria that causes TB often exhibit no symptoms, because their immune systems stop the bacteria from growing and multiplying. Those with compromised immune systems are more susceptible to developing the full blown disease which can cause symptoms that include coughing, spitting blood, chest pains, weakness, weight loss, and fever. Tuberculosis can be treated with a six to nine month course of a combination of antibiotics. If left untreated, TB will spread and can be fatal.

MDR-TB is defined as a form of TB that is resistant to the two most potent TB antibiotics, isoniazid and rifampin. MDR-TB is mostly associated with secondary resistance 5. MDR-TB spreads in the same manner as sensitive TB from one person to another. MDR-TB arises due to the bacteria starting to synthesize drug degrading enzymes or drug efflux or due to spontaneous mutations. In order to treat MDR-TB, community-based therapeutic approaches with programs such as MDR-TB specific Directly Observed Therapy – Short Course (DOTS)-Plus holds promise 6. Another approach follows therapy with second line antibiotics, however those are more expensive and have notable side effects. MDR-TB is believed to have a mortality rate of 80%.

Tuberculosis is among the fatal diseases that are spread through the air. It’s contagious, meaning that it spreads from one infected individual to another, and at times it spreads very fast. In addition to being contagious, the disease is an opportunist infection as it takes advantage of those with weak defense mechanism, and especially the ones with terminal diseases like HIV and AIDS. Tuberculosis is therefore among the major concerns for the World Health Organization due to its contagious nature (World Health Organization 1).