A chest x-ray or CT scan and a sample of sputum are needed to determine if a person has TB disease. Regimens, dosage and duration will be determined by a medical provider. TB disease generally is treated with a combination of several medications 6 to 12 months. It is important that people who have TB disease finish the medicine and take the drugs exactly as prescribed by their doctor.
If they stop taking the drugs too soon they can become sick again. If they do not take the drugs correctly, the bacteria that are still alive may become resistant to those drugs. TB that is resistant to drugs is harder and more expensive to treat.
If you have TB infection, you have a 10 percent chance of developing active disease over the course of your lifetime if you remain untreated. The chance of developing TB disease increases if you develop diabetes, are immunocompromised, have HIV, have a gastric by-pass or require prolonged use of corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive agents. If you have TB disease, in addition to spreading the disease to others, an untreated person may become severely ill or die.
People who have been treated for TB infection or TB disease are able to become infected again. Should children or others be excluded from child care, school, work or other activities if they have tuberculosis? People diagnosed with TB disease should isolated from the public until they have been determined by a doctor to no longer be infectious.
This can occur within a few weeks of initiating therapy, however, infectious periods may vary. People with TB infection who have been cleared of a TB disease diagnosis can participate in all activities whether they are receiving treatment or not.
As always, respiratory etiquette is recommended. People with TB disease should be excluded from school, day care or the work place until the sputum is negative about weeks after the beginning of treatment. All household and close contacts of a person with active TB disease should be screened using the TB skin test or TB blood test for evidence of infection. All contacts with evidence of infection should be evaluated by a physician for disease.
Routine screening of people who are at high-risk populations may help to diagnose TB infection. People nearby may breathe in these bacteria and become infected. When a person breathes in TB bacteria, the bacteria can settle in the lungs and begin to grow.
From there, they can move through the blood to other parts of the body, such as the kidney, spine, and brain. TB disease in the lungs or throat can be infectious. This means that the bacteria can be spread to other people. TB in other parts of the body, such as the kidney or spine, is usually not infectious. People with TB disease are most likely to spread it to people they spend time with every day.
This includes family members, friends, and coworkers or schoolmates. During treatment, a sputum culture is done once a month—or more often—to make sure that the antibiotics are working. You may have a chest X-ray at the end of treatment to use as a comparison in the future. You may have tests to see if TB medicines are harming other parts of your body. These tests may include:.
Public health officials encourage screening for people who are at risk for getting TB. Doctors treat tuberculosis TB with antibiotics to kill the TB bacteria. These medicines are given to everyone who has TB, including infants, children, pregnant women, and people who have a weakened immune system. Health experts recommend: footnote 7 footnote 4. Treatment is recommended for anyone with a skin test that shows a TB infection, and is especially important for people who:.
Treatment for tuberculosis in parts of the body other than the lungs extrapulmonary TB usually is the same as for pulmonary TB. You may need other medicines or forms of treatment depending on where the infection is in the body and whether complications develop. You may need treatment in a hospital if you have:.
If treatment is not successful, the TB infection can flare up again relapse. People who have relapses usually have them within 6 to 12 months after treatment. Treatment for relapse is based on the severity of the disease and which medicines were used during the first treatment. Active tuberculosis TB is very contagious. But this vaccination is almost never used in North America because:. Home treatment for tuberculosis TB focuses on taking the medicines correctly to reduce the risk of developing multidrug-resistant TB.
During treatment for TB, eat healthy foods and get enough sleep and some exercise to help your body fight the infection. If you are losing too much weight, eat balanced meals with enough protein and calories to help you keep weight on. If you need help, ask to talk with a registered dietitian.
Because TB treatment takes so long, it is normal to:. Your doctor or health department can help you find a counsellor or social worker to help you cope with your feelings. Several antibiotics are used at the same time to treat active tuberculosis TB disease. For people who have multidrug-resistant TB, treatment may continue for as long as 24 months.
These antibiotics are given as pills or injections. TB disease that occurs in parts of your body other than the lungs extrapulmonary TB usually is treated with the same medicines and for the same length of time as active TB in the lungs pulmonary TB.
But TB throughout the body miliary TB or TB that affects the brain or the bones and joints in children may be treated for at least 12 months.
Corticosteroid medicines also may be given in some severe cases to reduce inflammation. They may be helpful for children at risk of central nervous system problems caused by TB and for people who have conditions such as high fever, TB throughout the body miliary TB , pericarditis , or peritonitis. One antibiotic usually is used to treat latent TB infection, which cannot be spread to others but can develop into active TB disease.
For this treatment, a health professional may watch you take each dose of antibiotics. Taking every dose of antibiotic helps prevent the TB bacteria from getting resistant to the antibiotics. Multiple-drug therapy to treat TB usually involves taking four antibiotics at the same time. This is the standard treatment for active TB. If you miss doses of medicine or you stop treatment too soon, your treatment may go on longer or you may have to start over.
This can also cause the infection to get worse, or it may lead to antibiotic-resistant infections that are much harder to treat. Taking all of the medicines is especially important for people who have an impaired immune system.
They may be at an increased risk for a relapse because the original TB infection was never cured. Surgery is rarely used to treat tuberculosis TB. But it may be used to treat extensively drug-resistant TB XDR-TB or to treat complications of an infection in the lungs or another part of the body. Surgery has a high success rate, but it also has a risk of complications, which may include infections other than TB and shortness of breath after surgery.
Surgery sometimes may be needed to remove or repair organs damaged by TB in parts of the body other than the lungs extrapulmonary TB or to prevent other rare complications, such as:.
Current as of: September 23, Author: Healthwise Staff. Medical Review: E. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.
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Top of the page. Topic Overview What is tuberculosis? Tuberculosis is either latent or active. Latent TB means that you have the TB bacteria in your body, but your body's defences immune system are keeping it from turning into active TB.
This means that you don't have any symptoms of TB right now and can't spread the disease to others. If you have latent TB, it can become active TB. Active TB means that the TB bacteria are growing and causing symptoms.
If your lungs are infected with active TB, it is easy to spread the disease to others. How is TB spread to others? Who is most at risk for TB? This includes people who: Have HIV or another illness that weakens the immune system. Have close contact with someone who has active TB, such as living in the same house as someone who is infected with TB. Care for a patient who has active TB, such as doctors or nurses.
Live or work in crowded places, such as prisons, nursing homes, or homeless shelters, where other people may have active TB. Have poor access to health care, such as homeless people and migrant farm workers. Misuse of drugs or alcohol. What are the symptoms? Symptoms of active TB may include: A cough that brings up thick, cloudy, and sometimes bloody mucus from the lungs called sputum for more than 2 weeks. Tiredness and weight loss.
Night sweats and a fever. A rapid heartbeat. Swelling in the neck when lymph nodes in the neck are infected. Shortness of breath and chest pain in rare cases. How is TB diagnosed? How is it treated? Cause Tuberculosis TB is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis , slow-growing bacteria that thrive in areas of the body that are rich in blood and oxygen, such as the lungs. Symptoms If you have latent tuberculosis TB , you do not have symptoms and cannot spread the disease to others.
Symptoms of active TB in the lungs Symptoms of active TB in the lungs begin gradually and develop over a period of weeks or months. Common symptoms include: A cough with thick, cloudy, and sometimes bloody mucus from the lungs sputum for more than 2 weeks. Fever, chills, and night sweats. Fatigue and weakness. Loss of appetite and unexplained weight loss. Shortness of breath and chest pain. Symptoms of active TB outside the lungs Symptoms of TB outside the lungs extrapulmonary TB vary widely depending on which area of the body is infected.
What Happens Tuberculosis TB develops when Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria are inhaled into the lungs. Without treatment, active TB can cause serious complications, such as: Pockets or cavities that form in the lungs.
These damaged areas may cause bleeding in the lungs or may become infected with other bacteria and form pockets of pus abscesses. A hole that forms between nearby airways in the lungs. Difficulty breathing because of blocked airways.
TB can be fatal if it is not treated. Active TB outside the lungs Active TB in parts of the body other than the lungs extrapulmonary TB is not spread easily to other people. What Increases Your Risk People are at increased risk of infection with tuberculosis TB when they: Have close contact such as living in the same house with someone who has active TB, which can be spread to others. Active TB is very contagious.
Are health professionals who may care for people with untreated TB. Live or work in crowded conditions where they can come into contact with people who may have untreated active TB. This includes people who live or work in prisons, nursing homes, military barracks, or homeless shelters. Have poor access to health care, such as homeless people, migrant farm workers, or people who abuse alcohol or drugs. People who have an infection that cannot spread to others latent TB infection are at risk of developing active TB if they: Have an impaired immune system.
The immune system may be weakened in older adults, newborns, women who are pregnant or have recently given birth, and people who have HIV infection, some cancers, or poorly controlled diabetes. Take some types of medicines, such as long-term corticosteroids , biologics used to treat rheumatoid arthritis or Crohn's disease , or medicines to prevent rejection of a transplanted organ.
Have a chronic lung disease caused by breathing in tiny sand or silica particles silicosis or celiac disease. When should you call your doctor? Call your doctor immediately if you have: Symptoms such as a cough that may produce bloody mucus along with fever, fatigue, and weight loss that could be caused by tuberculosis TB. Been in close contact with someone who has untreated active TB, which can be spread to others, or you have had lengthy close contact with someone you think has untreated active TB.
Blurred vision or changes in how you see colours and are taking ethambutol for TB. Yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes jaundice or you have abdominal pain and you are taking isoniazid or other medicines for TB. Call your doctor if you: Have recently had a TB skin test and you have a red bump at the needle site. You need to have a reaction measured by a health professional within 2 to 3 days after the test. This measurement is important in deciding whether you need more tests or treatment.
Have been exposed to someone who has active TB. Who to see Your family doctor or general practitioner can help you find out if you have tuberculosis TB. For treatment of active TB, which can be spread to others, or to treat complications of TB, you may be referred to: Your local public health unit.
A respirologist , a doctor who specializes in treating lung problems. An infectious disease specialist. Examinations and Tests Diagnosing active TB in the lungs Doctors diagnose active tuberculosis TB in the lungs pulmonary TB by using a medical history and physical examination, and by checking your symptoms such as an ongoing cough, fatigue, fever, or night sweats.
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