Tuberculosis Program

What is tuberculosis (TB)?

Tuberculosis (TB) is caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacteria can cause two types of illness, an active form (TB disease) and a latent form (latent TB infection).

TB disease

TB disease is a serious but treatable infectious disease. TB bacteria can cause disease in the lungs, throat, lymph nodes, brain, spine, and many other sites. Untreated TB disease can be fatal.

The symptoms of TB disease are:

• Unexpected weight loss (i.e. not from dieting)
• Night sweats
• Weakness or fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Coughing up blood (if disease in lungs or throat)
• Chest pain (if disease in lungs)
• Shortness of breath (if disease in lungs)
• Other symptoms based on the site of disease

Treatment for TB disease includes:

• An evaluation of the patient, including bacterial specimens (if possible), chest X-ray, and physical exam.
• Prescribed anti-TB medications for several months. TB bacteria are unusual and take longer to kill than most other bacteria.

Latent TB infection (LTBI)

Most people that breathe in TB bacteria get LTBI, not TB disease. With LTBI:

• The immune system forms a wall around the TB bacteria, so the TB bacteria can’t multiply or spread.
• The person is not contagious and has no symptoms.
• The TB bacteria might stay latent for decades.
• The person will usually have a positive TB skin test (also called “PPD”), but his/her chest X-ray will not show evidence of TB.
• If the person does not get treatment, the TB bacteria could “activate” (go from being latent to causing TB disease). This can happen if the person’s health declines due to sickness, stress, or aging. In this situation, the immune system can no longer wall off the TB bacteria.

Treatment for LTBI

LTBI is usually treated with one medication for several months. An evaluation of each LTBI patient is needed in order to determine treatment needs.