Tuberculosis

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Term Paper Title	Tuberculosis
# of Words	1348
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	5.39

Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by a germ (bacterium) called
Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This germ primarily affects the lungs and may infect
anyone at any age.

In the United States, the number of TB cases steadily decreased until 1986 when
an increase was noted; TB has continued to rise since. Today, ten million
individuals are infected in the U.S., as evidenced by positive skin tests, with
approximately 26,000 new cases of active disease each year. The increase in TB
cases is related to HIV/AIDS, homelessness, drug abuse and immigration of
persons with active infections.

How is TB Contracted?

TB is a contagious or infectious disease that is spread from person-to- person.
A person is usually infected by inhaling the germs which have been sprayed into
the air by someone with the active disease who coughs.

However, inhaling the germ does not usually mean you will develop active disease.
A person's natural body defenses are usually able to control the infection so
that it does not cause disease. In this case, the person would be infected, but
not have active disease. Only about 10% of those infected will actually develop
TB in their lifetimes.

Active disease can occur in an infected person when the body's resistance is low
or if there is a large or prolonged exposure to the germs that overcome the
body's natural defenses. The body's response to active TB infection produces
inflammation which can eventually damage the lungs. The amount of damage may be
quite extensive, yet the symptoms may be minimal. The usual symptoms of disease
due to TB are:

-Fever -Night sweats -Cough -Loss of appetite -Weight Loss -Blood in the sputum
(phlegm) -Loss of energy

Diagnosing TB

To diagnose TB, your clinician will gather five important pieces of information:

-Symptoms -History of possible exposure and onset of symptoms -Tuberculin skin
test or PPD -Chest X-ray •Sputum test

Tuberculin Skin Test

The tuberculin skin test (or PPD) is performed with an extract of killed
tuberculosis germs that is injected into the skin. If a person has been infected
with tuberculosis, a lump will form at the site of the injection--this is a
positive test. This generally means that TB germs have infected the body. It
does not usually mean the person has active disease. People with positive skin
tests but without active disease cannot transmit the infection to others.

Chest X-Ray

If a person has been infected with TB, but active disease ha...

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