Tuberculosis: the disease, its treatment and prevention

Public Health England has issued a new fact sheet, intended for a general audience, about tuberculosis.

TB (tuberculosis) is an infectious disease that usually affects the lungs, although it can affect almost any part of the body. TB is not easily caught – you have to be in fairly prolonged close contact with someone with TB (for example, living in the same household) – but everybody should be aware of the symptoms of the disease so they can seek treatment as soon as possible.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) is transmitted from person to person, usually by mucous droplets i.e. cough, sneezes, laugh, sings or even breath. The size of particles are an estimated 1–5 mm, for prolonged time periods normal air currents can keep them airborne when it is inhales by a susceptible person these droplet nuclei traverse the mouth or nasal passages reach to the alveoli of the lungs. The infections depend on duration of exposure to infectious droplet nuclei and its concentration

This leaflet gives information on the disease tuberculosis (TB), how it can be treated, and its prevention, and it can be accessed here.



Posted by Dr. Tim Sandle