TUBERCULOSIS (TB)

What is Tuberculosis?

 Tuberculosis is caused by a germ called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, it usually affects the lungs, and other parts of the body, including the bones, joints, and brain. People of all ages can contact TB, The risk of Developing TB is highest in children  aged under 3 years and very old people , although any one may be affected

 

How is Tuberculosis Spread?

• TB is an air borne disease, i.e it is been spreed by air, when a person infested coughs or sneezes, the germ enters the air
• A person inhaling air that contains TB germs may become infected
• TB can spread rapidly where people are living in crowded conditions
• in some area it is possible to become infected by consuming unpasteurized milk (bovine TB)
• persons with TB infection who have weakened immune systems (i.e difficulty to fight diseases like people living with HIV/AIDs), are more likely to develop the disease than those with normal immune systems.

Signs and Symptoms of Tuberculosis
 The general symptoms of TB includes:

• Weakness
• Weight loss
• Fever
• Night sweat

 In TB of the lungs(pulmonary TB) the symptoms includes:

• Persistence cough
• Chest pains
• Coughing up of Blood

How ever in young children  the only sign of pulmonary TB may be;

• Failure to thrive
• Stunted Growth

Other signs and symptoms of TB may depend on parts of the body affected. for instance, in TB of the bones and joint there may be

• Swellings
• pains
• crippling effects of the hips, knees or spine.

 How is Tuberculosis Treated

• People with TB must complete a curative therapy course, which usually involves two or more anti-tuberculosis drugs for at least two months
• Unfortunately some people fails to take the drugs as prescribed by the doctors to complete there course of therapy, or they may be given ineffective treatments this may lead to multi-drug-resistant TB, which is more difficult to treat an can spread to other people
• A person with the disease can infect others several weeks into treatments.

How can TB be prevented
    The best way to prevent TB available for children against it is by immunization with BCG Vaccine.