The IAA One Minute Blog

Over 1,000 people, including 350 infants may have been exposed to tuberculosis (TB) in a California hospital after an active case of the disease was diagnosed in a nurse on December 13, 2015.

What is TB?

TB is caused by a bacterium called mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacteria usually attacks the lungs, but TB bacteria can attack any part of the body.

TB is spread through the air from one person to another. The TB bacteria are put into the air when a person with TB disease of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes, speaks, or sings. People nearby may breathe in the bacteria and become infected. TB is not spread by:

• Shaking someone's hand
• Sharing food or drink
• Sharing toothbrushes
• Touching bed linens or toilet seats

The signs and symptoms of TB are:

• A bad cough that lasts three weeks or longer
• Chills
• Coughing up blood or sputum
• Fever
• No appetite
• Pain in the chest
• Sweating at night
• Weakness or fatigue
• Weight loss

If not treated properly, TB can be fatal.

Types of TB

Not everyone infected with TB becomes sick. As a result, two TB-related conditions exist:

1. Latent TB infection: TB bacteria can live in the body without making you sick. This is called latent TB infection. In most people who breathe in TB bacteria and become infected, the body is able to fight the bacteria to stop them from growing. People with latent TB infection do not feel sick and do not have any symptoms. People with latent TB are not infectious and cannot spread bacteria to others.
2. TB disease: TB bacteria become active if the immune system cannot stop them from growing. When TB bacteria are active (multiplying in your body), this is called TB disease. People with TB disease are sick. They may also spread the disease to people they spend time with every day.

Once a person is infected with TB bacteria, the chances of developing TB disease is higher if the person:

• Abuses alcohol or drugs
• Has been infected with TB bacteria within the last two years
• Has HIV infection
• Has other health problems like diabetes, which make it hard for the body to fight bacteria
• Was not treated correctly for TB in the past

TB was once the leading cause of death in the United States.

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