- 10 - 15 million people in U.S. have TB germs and don't feel
sick
- TB is not spread on dishes, drinking glasses or other objects
- TB germs get into the air through: sneezes, coughs, laughs,
speaking
- TB germs are spread through the air by extended, confined
contact in a poorly ventilated area
TB infection - a condition
in which TB bacteria are alive but inactive in the body. People
with TB infection have no symptoms, don't feel sick, can't spread
TB to others, and usually have a positive skin test reaction.
But they may develop TB disease later in life if they do not receive
preventive therapy.
TB disease - an illness in
which TB bacteria are multiplying and attacking different parts
of the body. The symptoms of TB disease include weakness, weight
loss, fever, no appetite, chills, and sweating at night. Other
symptoms of TB disease depend on where in the body the bacteria
are growing. If TB disease is in the lungs (pulmonary TB), the
symptoms may include a bad cough, pain in the chest, and coughing
up blood.
TB Basics
TB, or tuberculosis, is a disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium
tuberculosis. The bacteria can attack any part of your body, but
they usually attack the lungs. TB disease was once the leading
cause of death in the United States.
In the 1940s, scientists discovered the first of several drugs
now used to treat TB. As a result, TB slowly began to disappear
in the United States. But TB has come back. After 1984, the number
of TB cases reported in the United States began to increase. More
than 25,000 cases were reported in 1993.
TB is spread through the air from one person to another. The
bacteria are put into the air when a person with TB disease of
the lungs or throat coughs or sneezes. People nearby may breathe
in these bacteria and become infected.
People who are infected with TB do not feel sick, do not have
any symptoms, and cannot spread TB. But they may develop TB disease
at some time in the future. People with TB disease can be treated
and cured if they seek medical help. Even better, people who have
TB infection but are not yet sick can take medicine so that they
will never develop TB disease.
If I Have TB Infection, How Can I Keep from
Developing TB Disease?
Many people who have TB infection never develop TB disease. But
some people who have TB infection are more likely to develop TB
disease than others. These people are at high
risk for TB disease. They include
- people with HIV infection
- people in close contact with a person who has infectious TB
- people who became infected with TB bacteria in the last 2
years
- babies and young children
- people who inject drugs
- people who are sick with other diseases that weaken the immune
system
- elderly people
Who are most at-risk?
Some persons are considered to be at high risk for TB disease
because they belong to groups in which the prevalence of TB infection
is higher than it is in the general population. These groups include
foreign-born persons from areas with a high prevalence of TB;
residents and employees of long-term institutional settings (such
as nursing homes and correctional facilities); and medically underserved
populations, including the poor, the homeless, high risk racial
and ethnic minority groups, and injecting drug users (IDUs). Other
persons include immunocompromised persons (especially those with
HIV infection), persons with other medical risk factors (such
as diabetes, end-stage renal disease, and being 10 percent or
more below ideal body weight), and IDUs.
Sources: Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention; American Lung Association; "About
TB" |
