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FAQ - Frequently Asked
Questions
What is Tuberculosis?
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that spreads from
person to person through the
air when a person with
active TB disease coughs or
sneezes. TB primarily
affects the lungs but can
also affect other organs.
What is TB infection?
Latent TB infection means that although a person has the TB
infection in their body, it
is dormant and can not
spread to others. Latent TB
infection can develop into
active TB disease. Any other
disease or condition which
compromises the immune
system can increase the
likelihood that TB infection
will develop into TB
disease. Treatment is
recommended for most people
with latent TB infection,
especially those at
increased risk for active
disease.
An inactive infection does
not cause the person to feel
sick, display any TB
symptoms, or become
contagious. However, it
normally causes the person
to have a positive skin test
reaction and, unless the
person receives treatment,
he/she may develop TB
disease at some point in the
future.
What is TB active
disease?
If an infected person's body is not able to make the TB germ
inactive, they are said to
have "active TB" or "TB
disease." If TB disease is
not treated, it can cause
serious illness or even
death. There is effective
medical treatment for both
latent TB infection and
active TB disease.
What are the symptoms?
Symptoms
of TB disease include fever,
coughing, fatigue, weight
loss, diminished appetite,
or coughing up blood. TB can
take six to nine months to
cure, longer if the strain
is resistant to drugs.
What is a TB skin test?
The TB
skin test is a safe method
to detect if you have been
infected with TB. It can be
given to anyone who needs it
but must be read by a
trained health care worker
within 48 to 72 hours of
administering the test. It
has no adverse effects and
can be given during
pregnancy.
What does a positive TB
test mean?
A positive TB test means that someone has been exposed to the
TB germ and follow up
evaluation is needed. Once a
positive TB test has been
confirmed to be truly
positive, there is no point
in having repeat TB tests in
the future. They will not
hurt you, or cause disease,
but will always continue to
be positive.
Could BCG vaccine affect
TB skin test results?
BCG vaccine (Bacille Calmette-Guerin) used in countries where
TB is endemic, can decrease
the severity of TB in
children but will not
prevent TB infection.
Contrary to what many people
have been told, having
received a BCG vaccine in
the past will not usually
cause a positive TB skin
test. If you have a positive
TB skin test, you should
assume you are infected with
TB.
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