"Lungs" are dedicated to protecting health! Please pay attention to these knowledge points about tuberculosis

When it comes to tuberculosis, many people are afraid of being infected.

In fact, after years of scientific research, tuberculosis has been better treated and controlled clinically, but the harm caused by tuberculosis cannot be ignored. Pulmonary tuberculosis is a common infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

The number of tuberculosis patients in my country ranks second in the world. According to the report of the World Health Organization, the number of new tuberculosis patients in my country ranks third in the world, but the overall number of patients still ranks second in the world, second only to India.

In 1993, the World Health Organization declared a "global tuberculosis emergency" and designated March 24 of each year as "World Tuberculosis Day."

With the advancement of medicine, this disease can be cured and controlled. Tuberculosis is not contagious. Not all types of tuberculosis are contagious, nor is any tuberculosis patient contagious at any time during the illness. For example, bone tuberculosis and meningeal tuberculosis are not contagious.

1. What is tuberculosis?

Experts from the Third Affiliated Hospital of the University of South China said that pulmonary tuberculosis is a chronic infectious disease caused by infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This pathogen is mainly transmitted through the respiratory tract. When the body's resistance is reduced, the tuberculosis bacteria may invade various organs throughout the body, but mainly invade the lungs, which is called pulmonary tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis can seriously affect the health of individual patients. If not thoroughly treated, they will lose their ability to work or even die. In addition, tuberculosis is transmitted through the respiratory tract and is highly contagious, endangering the health of others. If it becomes multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, it will be even more harmful to individuals, families and society.

1) Who is susceptible to tuberculosis? What should you do if you come into close contact with someone who has tuberculosis?

All people are generally susceptible to tuberculosis, but certain groups of people should be particularly vigilant about whether they are infected with pulmonary tuberculosis. Generally speaking, only patients with pulmonary tuberculosis or laryngeal tuberculosis are contagious, and sputum tuberculosis smear tests can detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Patients with positive tuberculosis smears are the most contagious. When patients with pulmonary tuberculosis cough, expectorate, sneeze, or talk loudly, they will spread tuberculosis droplets into the air, which can also be inhaled by people around them, causing infection.

Anyone who has frequent contact with tuberculosis patients and has cough and sputum for more than two weeks should suspect that they have tuberculosis and seek medical attention promptly.

2) How do you know if you have tuberculosis?

Typical symptoms of pulmonary tuberculosis include long-term cough, sputum, hemoptysis and blood in sputum, chest pain, fever, etc. In severe cases, symptoms such as general fatigue, loss of appetite, and weight loss may occur.

In addition, patients with pulmonary tuberculosis may also experience special symptoms such as night sweats and low-grade fever in the afternoon.

2. Diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis

1. Sputum tuberculosis examination.

(1) Sputum smear examination: Collect sputum specimens correctly. Generally, three sputum specimens should be examined for the first time: night, early morning and immediate sputum. It is the "golden method" for diagnosis.

(2) Sputum tuberculosis culture: It usually takes 2-6 weeks to culture. If no bacterial growth is seen after 8 weeks, the report is negative.

(3) Tuberculosis nucleic acid test for sputum: The results are usually available in about 2 days.

2. Listen to the lungs with a stethoscope to observe any abnormal breath sounds.

3. Observing lung lesions through chest X-ray (routinely preferred) or CT and other imaging examinations can help detect tuberculosis early.

4. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy is of great value in the diagnosis of bronchial tuberculosis.

5. The EC test is of great significance for screening tuberculosis in adults. Those under 5 years old with a strong positive reaction are considered to have newly infected active tuberculosis.

1) Medication and treatment

The key to treating pulmonary tuberculosis is early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment. At present, drug treatment is the most important means of treating tuberculosis. The most common tuberculosis drugs are isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RFP), ethambutol (EB), pyrazinamide (PZA), rifapentine (RFP) and so on.

After being diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis, patients should continue to receive treatment (at least 6-8 months). Any changes in treatment should be decided by a doctor. (Early treatment is less harmful, and multiple drugs are effective. The dosage should be standardized and the doctor should remember it throughout the treatment.) During the treatment, patients also need to have regular checkups to ensure that the condition is under control.

The general treatment course for patients with first-time pulmonary tuberculosis is 6 months, the general treatment course for patients with recurrent pulmonary tuberculosis is 8 months, the treatment course for patients with drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis is generally 24 months, and the treatment course for patients with extensively drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis is 36 months.

2) Precautions when taking medication

Follow the doctor's orders for treatment. Do not stop or change the medication on your own. If you experience symptoms such as dizziness, gastrointestinal discomfort, nausea, blurred vision, etc., go to the hospital or designated tuberculosis medical institution in time.

Check on time. If you do not adhere to regular treatment, it is easy to have serious consequences. The tuberculosis bacteria in the body will multiply repeatedly, resulting in the disease not being cured and chronic bacterial excretion. In severe cases, the tuberculosis bacteria in the body will easily develop drug resistance and develop into drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis.

3. How to prevent tuberculosis?

The key to preventing tuberculosis is to improve the body's resistance and reduce the chance of infection.

1. Maintain good living habits

Get enough sleep, eat a healthy diet, and exercise appropriately to enhance your body's resistance.

2. Avoid contact with patients

When going to crowded places, you should wear a mask at all times and try to avoid close contact with tuberculosis patients to reduce the chance of infection.

3. Vaccination

BCG vaccination is an effective measure to prevent children from developing severe tuberculosis.

4. Improve living environment

Keep indoor air circulating to reduce the growth of dust and bacteria.

5. Improve personal hygiene awareness

Wash your hands frequently and pay attention to oral hygiene to reduce the chance of germs invading.

Although we already have effective treatments, we still need to pay attention to prevention and reduce the chance of infection by improving human resistance, improving living environment, and paying attention to personal hygiene.

At the same time, we must have a correct understanding of tuberculosis, not panic, and not underestimate it. Timely detection and treatment are the key to controlling the disease.

I hope that through this introduction, everyone can have a deeper understanding of tuberculosis and better protect themselves and their families from this disease. Let us work together to create a healthy living environment.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Xiao Fang, the Third Affiliated Hospital of University of South China

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(Edited by YT)