Tuberculosis
(TB) by Gabe Folkedahl
Cause
Bacteria causes TB, and the scientific name of this bacteria is Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Transmission
TB is transmitted when a person infected with TB coughs and the bacteria hangs in the air until someone else breathes in the bacteria.
There is no other known way that the disease can spread and there is no vector.
Symptoms
In the early stages of the disease occur, these are the symptoms:
- Slight fever
- Loss of appetite and weight
- Pain in the chest
- Bloody cough
Treatment
The most successful way of treatment was with a combination of antibiotics.
These are also some drugs that can treat tuberculosis:
- Isoniazid
- Rifampin (Rifadin, Rimactane)
- Ethambutol (Myambutol)
- Pirazinamide
Prevention
There is no known way to prevent Mycobacterium tuberculosis from entering your system-or you could just not breathe ever again, but that might not work out so well.
Incidence
People in developing countries have a greater chance to develop TB.
Prognosis
1.5 million people a year die from TB.
The treatment does not effect the prognosis.
Current Events
In January of 2016, elephants infected with TB were transferred to the Oregon zoo and infected 7 staff.
There was another recent outbreak at Olathe Northwest High in Kansas on March 18, where 27 people tested positive for TB after a single case of TB prompted testing for the 300-plus community of students and staff
Historical Signifigance
50 years ago, 1 out of 3 people had TB, which would be almost everyone you knew, family, friends, and maybe even you would have had the disease.