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Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb), also known as Koch's bacillus, is a species of pathogenic bacteria in the family Mycobacteriaceae and the causative agent of tuberculosis. [1] [2] First discovered in 1882 by Robert Koch, M. tuberculosis has an unusual, waxy coating on its cell surface primarily due to the presence of mycolic acid.
In 2010, 8.8 million new cases of tuberculosis were diagnosed, and 1.20–1.45 million deaths occurred (most of these occurring in developing countries). [78] [171] Of these, about 0.35 million occur in those also infected with HIV. [172] In 2018, tuberculosis was the leading cause of death worldwide from a single infectious agent. [1]
Controlling the spread of tuberculosis infection can prevent tuberculous spondylitis and arthritis. Patients who have a positive PPD test (but not active tuberculosis) may decrease their risk by properly taking medicines to prevent tuberculosis. To effectively treat tuberculosis, patients must take their medications exactly as prescribed. [2]
It has been suggested that airborne transmission should be classified as being either obligate, preferential, or opportunistic, although there is limited research that show the importance of each of these categories. [23] Obligate airborne infections spread only through aerosols; the most common example of this category is tuberculosis.
Miliary tuberculosis is a form of tuberculosis that is characterized by a wide dissemination into the human body and by the tiny size of the lesions (1–5 mm). Its name comes from a distinctive pattern seen on a chest radiograph of many tiny spots distributed throughout the lung fields with the appearance similar to millet seeds—thus the term "miliary" tuberculosis.
"A person with TB disease may feel perfectly healthy or may only have a cough from time to time." [12] However, these symptoms do not guarantee tuberculosis, and they may not exist at all, yet the patient may still have active tuberculosis. A person with symptoms listed may have active tuberculosis, and the person should immediately see a ...
Transmission-based precautions are infection-control precautions in health care, in addition to the so-called "standard precautions". They are the latest routine infection prevention and control practices applied for patients who are known or suspected to be infected or colonized with infectious agents, including certain epidemiologically important pathogens, which require additional control ...
The medical history includes obtaining the symptoms of pulmonary TB: productive, prolonged cough of three or more weeks, chest pain, and hemoptysis.Systemic symptoms include low grade remittent fever, chills, night sweats, appetite loss, weight loss, easy fatiguability, and production of sputum that starts out mucoid but changes to purulent. [1]