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Tuberculosis Signs & Symptoms


Bangladeshpost
Published : 25 Feb 2021 09:19 PM

A TB infection doesn’t always mean you’ll get sick. There are two forms of the disease:

Latent TB: You have the germs in your body, but your immune system keeps them from spreading. You don’t have any symptoms, and you’re not contagious. But the infection is still alive and can one day become active. If you’re at high risk for re-activation -- for instance, if you have HIV, you had an infection in the past 2 years, your chest X-ray is unusual, or your immune system is weakened -- your doctor will give you medications to prevent active TB.  

Active TB: The germs multiply and make you sick. You can spread the disease to others. Ninety percent of active cases in adults come from a latent TB infection.

A latent or active TB infection can also be drug-resistant, meaning certain medications don’t work against the bacteria. Latent TB doesn’t have symptoms. A skin or blood test can tell if you have it.

Signs of active TB disease include:

•    A cough that lasts more than 3 weeks

•    Chest pain

•    Coughing up blood

•    Feeling tired all the time

•    Night sweats

•    Chills

•    Fever

•    Loss of appetite

•    Weight loss

    Courtesy: WebMD