Tuberculosis

Pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious bacterial infection that mainly involves the lungs, but may spread to other organs. It is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It was discovered in 1882 by a German physician named Robert Koch. Many years ago, it had been referred to as consumption because those who contracted the disease would waste away without treatment.

Symptoms
-Cough (sometimes producing phlegm)
-Coughing up blood
-Excessive sweating, especially at night
-Fatigue
-Fever
-Unintentional weight loss
-Breathing difficulty
-Chest pain
-Wheezing
-Clubbing of the fingers or toes (in people with advanced disease)
-Enlarged or tender lymph nodes in the neck or other areas
-Fluid around a lung
-Unusual breath sounds (crackles)

Treatment
A successful treatment of TB involves a combination of several drugs. This may be difficult for some people. If the infected patient does not take the medication as instructed it can severely complicate the infection because the drugs may no longer be able to treat the infection. Some patients may need to be admitted to a hospital to prevent the spread of the illness.
Standard therapy for active TB consists of a six-month regimen:
two months with Rifater (isoniazid, rifampin, and pyrazinamide)
four months of isoniazid and rifampin (Rifamate, Rimactane)
ethambutol (Myambutol) or streptomycin added until the patient’s drug sensitivity is known


Causes
Pulmonary tuberculosis is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). You can get tuberculosis by breathing in air droplets from a cough or sneeze of an infected person. In the United States, most people will recover from primary TB infection without further evidence of the disease. The infection may stay dormant for years and then reactivate. Most people who develop symptoms of a TB were most likely infected much earlier in the past. However, in some cases, the disease may become active within weeks after the primary infection.

The following people are at higher risk for active TB:
-Elderly
-Infants
-People with weakened immune systems, for example due to AIDS, chemotherapy, or antirejection medicines given after an organ transplant
Your risk of contracting TB increases if you:
-Are in frequent contact with people who have the disease
-Have poor nutrition
-Live in crowded or unsanitary living conditions
The following factors may increase the rate of TB infection in a population:
-Increase in HIV infections
-Increase in number of homeless people (poor environment and nutrition)
-The appearance of drug-resistant strains of TB

Interesting Facts

-Ireland gives the BCG vaccine to all residents which inoculate them against tuberculosis.
-Many years ago, TB once had the mortality rate that cancer does today.
-In the United States, there are approximately 10 cases of TB per 100,000 people.
-Every year, three million people die from tuberculosis and eight million new people develop the disease. Tuberculosis in the world's foremost cause of death from a single infectious agent.
-One-third of the world's population is infected with tuberculosis.
-Successful treatment requires 68 months of consistent, uninterrupted medication.

Websites

https://www.google.com/health/ref/Pulmonary+tuberculosis
http://www.medicinenet.com/tuberculosis/article.htm
http://www.interesting.vaty.net/2006/09/interesting-facts-about-tuberculosis.html
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/tuberculosis/page6_em.htm