Tuberculosis (often called TB) is an infectious disease, usually infecting the lungs, but can infect almost any part of the body.
What are the signs & symptoms of TB?
A person with the TB infection (a positive PPD skin test) will have no symptoms. However, a person with TB disease may have a cough that will not go away, fatigue all of the time, weight loss, loss of appetite fever, coughing up blood, and night sweats.
How is tuberculosis (TB) spread?
Tuberculosis is spread from person to person through the air. When people are infected with TB in their lungs they can spread it to another person by coughing, laughing, sneezing, singing or simply by talking. This is because the germs that cause TB are spread air droplets. If another person breathes in these germs there is a chance that they will be infected with tuberculosis. However, repeated contact are ususally required for infection.
Exposure to TB vs TB disease:
It is important to understand that there is a difference between being infected with TB and having TB disease. Someone who is infected with TB has the TB germs, or bacteria, in their body, and they will have a positive skin test (known as the PPD). The body's defenses are protecting them from the germs and they are not sick.
Someone with TB disease has a positive skin test (known as a PPD, is sick, is contagious, and able to spread the disease to other people. Therefore a person with TB disease needs to see a doctor and get treatment as soon as possible.
What if I am pregnant and I have TB? Can I take the anti-tuberculosis medications without harming my unborn child? Will my child be born with TB?
Drug therapy to treat TB during pregnancy pregnancy has been established as safe and effective for over thirty years. It is now believed that there is no increase in congenital malformations with mothers taking the anti-tuberculosis drugs. Rifampin, isoniaz, and ethambutol are the three drugs used in combination to treat TB.
Although pregnancy is usually an anti-drug period, women who become pregnant while on anti-tuberculosis drug can be reassured that there appears to be no increased risk to their baby, and that they should complete their drug treatment course.
Breast feeding is also safe during anti-tuberculosis therapy. It is usually unnecessary for the new born child to receive treatment unless the mother is diagnosed with open (infectious) pulmonary tuberculosis at the time of delivery. However, to be safe mothers need to talk thoroughly with their health care provider regarding the risks associated with tuberculosis, the risks for both mother and unborn fetus.
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