It is a disease caused by the microbe called "Koch's bacillus"or"mycobacterium tuberculosis". Although it has been known as early as human history, developments in the treatment of the disease became possible after the 20th century. Today, it is a completely treatable disease. However, if left untreated, the disease may result in death or serious sequelae and disability. In addition, due to being contagious, untreated patients pose a significant risk to public health. This infection, which most commonly causes disease in the lungs, can affect all organs and tissues.
What are the symptoms of tuberculosis?
Cough, sputum, spitting blood, chest pain, Fever, night sweats, weakness, loss of appetite, and weight loss can be counted among the main symptoms. While all of these symptoms may be seen, very few of them may be present in the initial stages of the disease.
How is tuberculosis diagnosed?
When tuberculosis is suspected through disease history and physical examination, chest radiography, Blood tests and other imaging methods are used when necessary. A definitive diagnosis is made by detecting the tuberculosis microbe in sputum or other body fluids depending on the organ or tissue involved. In addition, it can be diagnosed by microscopically observing the damage caused by the tuberculosis microbe in biopsies of the affected organs and tissues.
Treatment
Treatment should be started as soon as the diagnosis is made. Initially, at least 4 types of medication are used for 2 months, then the type of medication is reduced to 2 and the treatment period is completed to 6 months. Not interrupting the treatment is essential for the success of the treatment.
Protection
Tuberculosis is an infectious disease, transmitted through the respiratory tract (droplet ) is transmitted from person to person. The most contagious patients are those who complain of intense cough and sputum and have microbes detected in their sputum. It is of primary importance for these patients to be diagnosed quickly and to start treatment quickly in terms of prevention. After appropriate treatment is started, the amount of bacilli in the sputum of these patients decreases rapidly and becomes infectious within a few weeks. /strong> disappears.
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