Tuberculosis
Introduction: Causative organism: Mycobacterium tuberculosis . Tuberculosis ( MTB , TB ) is an infectious disease usually caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis . Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs , but can also affect other parts of the body. Tuberculosis is spread through the air when people who have active TB in their lungs cough, spit, speak, or sneeze. People with latent TB do not spread the disease. Active infection occurs more often in people with HIV/AIDS and in those who smoke. Diagnosis of active TB is based on chest X-rays , as well as microscopic examination and culture of body fluids. Diagnosis of latent TB relies on the tuberculin skin test (TST) or blood tests. Prevention of TB involves screening those at high risk, early detection and treatment of cases, and vaccination with the bacillus Calmette-Guérin vaccine (BCG) . Antibiotic resistance is a growing problem with increasing rates of multiple drug-resistant
