Symptoms, prevention and other things to know about Tuberculosis

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Tuberculosis; a deadly lung disease is very common these days. Today we will be telling you common things about T.B and related information to it.

In the packets of cigarettes it is written; “Smoking is injurious to health.” But still a huge number of individuals are addicted in it. They know this thing that this thing is not a bit good. Smoking and drinking causes cancers and on other hand T.B too.

What is T.B? What is the interrelationship between smoking and T.B? Let us move on to the following description and get the answers to our questions.

What is Tuberculosis or T.B?

tuberculosis disease
tuberculosis disease

Tuberculosis; shortly called T.B is a fatal kind of bacterial disease. Tuberculosis is a pulmonary infectious disease caused by bacterium called ‘Mycobacterium tuberculosis’. It is an aerobic bacillus form of bacterium that multiplies as entered into lungs. In some cases, the bacteria exist into the body inactive without developing any kind of symptom.

When the bacteria multiply into a huge amount it weakens the immune system. Active T.B can be fatal if untreated. In 90% of cases, tuberculosis occurs in lungs but it can also affect other parts of the body.

Those forms of T.B that occurs in lungs are called ‘Pulmonary tuberculosis’ and those that occurs outside the lungs; like in some other organs then it is called ‘Extra pulmonary tuberculosis’.

Signs and symptoms of T.B:-

Firstly, as the active bacterium reaches to the lungs via inhale, it possesses the potential and gets multiplied that causes Pneumonia. Tuberculosis initially occurs in the upper part of the lungs called ‘lobe’.

Hey guys, don’t be serious because there is also a good news in T.B, that is those individuals whose immune system is strong and properly developed they accompanies the potential that they can develop resistance in the growth of bacterium hence avoiding the risks of T.B.

tuberculosis bacteria
tuberculosis bacteria

Well, if the bacterium remains active in lungs they get multiplied and steadily develop these symptoms that are listed below:-

  • Tiredness and dizziness
  • Appetite loss
  • Night sweats
  • High fever
  • Coughing of sputum or blood
  • Nail clubbing
  • Shortness of breath
  • Chest pain

Diagnosis of T.B:-

tuberculosis affected lungs
tuberculosis affected lungs

However, the diagnosis of tuberculosis becomes difficult as it is an immune-suppressed lung disorder.

  • The diagnosis process includes, Chest X-ray, multiple sputum cultures. But a definite diagnosis is made by identifying the bacteria in the sample of sputum, pus or tissue biopsy.
  • The result of the diagnosis takes almost 2-6 weeks. ‘Mantoux tuberculin skin test’ is a speed process but is used only n the individuals suffering from high risk of T.B.
  • In the skin test, a small amount of purified extract of dead bacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) is injected under the skin. If the person is not infected with T.B; no reaction will occur.
  • But, if the infection exists then a reaction will occur in the injected portion; Redness and rashes will occur showing the T.B existence in the body.
  • The positive reaction occurs 48-78 hours after the injection.

Prevention for T.B:-

As we discussed earlier, tuberculosis is an airborne form of the disease that occurs that means avoiding safety measures and being in the company of T.B infected individual.

T.B is more likely to attack those whose immune system is not strong.

Following are some of the methods through which you can keep yourselves prevented from T.B

  1. Avoid the usage of drugs, cigarettes and alcohols. These are the addictive products that enhance the growth of T.B bacterium.
  2. Avoid the unhygienic surroundings and protect yourselves from the active T.B individuals as their sneeze, cough can directly infect you.
  3. Try to be in a healthy lifestyle. Your health is in your hands; make your daily routine healthy. If you are in a healthy routine all type of ailments will be away.
  4. Personal hygiene is necessary. It means keep your body sterilized and away from germs. This will help you a lot.
  5. Ventilation is good and helps to keep away any kind of microbes leading you healthy.
  6. Cover your nose and mouth while going outside. As we told, T.B not only spreads through infected ones it can also spread by respiratory fluids waving in air. So, make sure that you cover your nose and mouth with masks or handkerchief.

How to cure T.B?

drugs for t-b
drugs for t-b

If the disease is in 1st or 2nd stage, then it is in the chance of getting cured. Now, we will be telling you some of the cure for Tuberculosis.

  1. BCG (Bacillus Calmette Guerin) is a vaccine against tuberculosis.
  2. In the pulmonary one, antibiotics are advised for 6 months. The antibiotics are like- isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide and ethambutol.
  3. These antibiotics not works instantly, it takes several weeks or months to show its curing action.
  4. This 6 months dose is compulsory and this chain should not be broken, otherwise it can lead to some extra medications.
  5. While the dosage is on, regular checkups should be done to know the progress of antibiotics.
  6. In the case of extra pulmonary T.B, same antibiotics are prescribed but the dosage period increases i.e. 12 months
  7. If the T.B affects your neural system; your brain corticosteroid like prednisolone is advised for some weeks that aid your swelling. In the latent T.B (tuberculosis without symptom) usually this takes place in aged individuals.
  8. If the individual suffering from latent T.B is above the age of 35 then no antibiotics or drugs are prescribed as the chances of liver damage increases.
  9. These patients are treated by chemotherapy.
  10. These are monitored under immune-suppress medications by which their immune system responds and itself kills the T.B pathogens.

How Smoking is interlinked to Tuberculosis:-

Smoking is one of the main reasons for the development of T.B in youngsters. It has became kind of trend of sipping cigarettes. A cigarette contains harmful elements that enters into our body as smoke and damages our body parts.

smoking and tuberculosis
smoking and tuberculosis

Especially, it damages the lungs and its alveoli’s (the functioning unit of lungs) that makes us prone of pulmonary T.B.

It is a good thing that there is the cure of T.B but this is a cure. After the cure our body gets weak. It is also said “Prevention is better than cure.” It means it is good to prevent yourselves instead of getting cured.

It doesn’t need any difficult procedures; instead of that it needs only easy routine. So protect yourselves and help to eradicate T.B from the world.

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2 Comments

  1. sanjay Rai October 21, 2016
    • Avatar of Shalini Jaiswal Shalini Jaiswal October 23, 2016

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