Types of Tuberculosis and Its Symptoms - Essay Example

Introduction It is one of the major global health concerns that is significantly impacted by the external environmental conditions. It is also second most common cause of death in under-developed and developing nations. It is highly infectious and though curable, it can be fatal if untreated. Nearly 2 million people die of the disease worldwide every year (Frieden et al., 2003). The disease becomes dangerous because its symptoms are not always visible and the bacteria may lie dormant for more than twenty years before attacking the body parts and damaging it. It is essential that it is diagnosed early and treated as it could worsen fast, leading to death and most importantly, faster transmission to larger number of people who inadvertently come in contact with the person with tuberculosis. 2. Pathophysiology of the disease Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria known as Mycobacterium Tuberculosis or M Tuberculosis which was discovered by Robert Koch, a German scientist in 1882 (Frieden et al., 2003). They are of two types: active and inactive. The active bacteria attacks body parts and enters body through air. Infected person can easily transmit it to others through breath, sneezing, spits etc. The body part that is attacked is damaged gradually till it becomes dysfunctional, ultimately leading to death. For example, in pulmonary tuberculosis, person inhales the bacteria when he/she comes in contact with TB patient, which then enter blood stream through lymphohematogenous route and damage lungs. Elkington et al., (2011) believe that production of enzyme called MMP-1 is considerably increased in the presence of M Tuberculosis. This is path breaking discovery that can significantly influence the treatment. The inactive M Tuberculosis is fought off by the body immune system and therefore cannot spread the disease. Even after years, it can only become active if the body immunity system is weakened (Davies, 1994). 3. Types of tuberculosis Though bacteria can attack any part of body like lungs, lymphatic system, central nervous system, bones, joints, genitourinary system etc., the hematogenous pulmonary tuberculosis and urinary tract tuberculosis are more widespread. Of the two, pulmonary tuberculosis is most common cause of death in the developing and under-developed countries. 4. Symptoms The regular symptoms of the disease are (Golub & Mhan, 2005): 1. Persistent dry cough which could blood in sputum 2. Weight loss 3. High temperature and sweating at night 4. fatigue Urinary tract tuberculosis often does not show normal symptoms of tuberculosis but can be confused with other infections of the urinary system (Wang et al., 2003). Its symptoms include: 1. Pyuria or presence of pus in urine 2. Hematuria or blood in urine 3. Back and suprapubic pain 4. Nocturia develops strong urge to urinate at night 5. Types of tests/ diagnosis The most common test for the disease are (Martinson, 2011): 1. X-ray of lungs 2. Sputum test 3. Culture test for TB bacteria 4. Injection of protein on the skin and the positive test would result in swelling For urinary tract tuberculosis 5. CT scan and MRI are useful in showing abnormal growth in urinary tract, uterus and fallopian tube 6. Intravenous urography could detect single calyx or calyceal distortion, ureteric strictures, bladder fibrosis in advance cases 6. Causes The bacteria infection makes it a highly contagious disease and many factors can become leading cause (NHS, 2011): 1. Children and older people who are exposed to the persons with tuberculosis 2. HIV/AIDS as it weakens the immunity system and makes people vulnerable to the infection 3. Crowded place where it is easy to breathe in the TB bacteria like prison 4. Poverty and non-hygienic conditions as these factors highlight lack of nutrition and environment that is conducive to attract the infection. It is for these reasons that the disease is more prevalent in developing and under-developed countries of South-East Asia, Africa etc. 7. Environmental factors/ risk of tuberculosis The external environment and the immunity system of the individuals are key factors that increase or decrease the risk of tuberculosis. The poverty and unhygienic conditions of the under-developed nations is critical issue that requires to be urgently addressed. It is also revealed that the process of globalization and immigration and emigration of people across the globe has resulted in recurrence of the disease after years. In fact, the occurrence and detection of tuberculosis is UK, US and Europe is mainly in the immigrant population who might be having latent bacteria that is difficult to diagnose. In 2009, 9040 cases of tuberculosis were detected in UK with 1/3 in London itself (NHS, 2011). 8. Treatment Treatment of tuberculosis is long and needs to be strictly undertaken as TB bacteria is difficult to kill and only extended period of treatment (six month) is able to eradicate the bacteria from the body. Antibiotics are essential part of treatment that is given under physicians’ guidance (Volmink & Garner, 2006). DOTS or Directly Observed Treatments Short course, is an initiative of World Health Organization where patients are given pills by the medically authorized person so that treatment can be stringently followed (Shargie & Lindtjorn, 2005). This was found to be the most effective way of treating patients of tuberculosis in developing and under-developed countries who were poor and lacked will as well as resources for their treatment. 9. Preventive measures 1. BCG vaccine is recommended as major prevention measure. It is normally administered in childhood but must also be used by people who are at high risk like health workers. 2. Healthy living conditions 3. Building strong immunity system through good diet, exercise and hygiene 4. Using face mask and avoiding touching of things of tuberculosis patients 10. Conclusion Tuberculosis is a curable disease provided its treatment is taken seriously and regularly without missing any medication. This is important as M Tuberculosis is a tough bacterium which requires prolonged medication to be killed or to be made ineffective. Early vaccine and precautions hugely facilitate its prevention. Since it can be fought successfully by body immunity system, measures that support building up of immunity system should be incorporated within one’s daily routine. Moreover, regular medical check up of people at high risk like HIV/AIDS, health workers, family workers of TB patients must be carried out to detect it early and started treatment. (words: 1038) Reference Davies P.D. ‘Tuberculosis and migration.’ The Mitchell Lecture, J R Coll Physicians London, 29 (1995): 113-118. Elkington, Paul et al. ‘MMP-1 drives immunopathology in human tuberculosis and transgenic mice.’ Journal of Clinical Investigation, 121.5 (2011): 1827-1833. Frieden TR, Sterling TR, Munsiff SS, Watt CJ, Dye C. ‘Tuberculosis.’ Lancet, 362 (2003):887-899. Golub JE, Mohan CI, Comstock GW, Chaisson RE. ‘Active case finding of tuberculosis: historical perspective and future prospects.’ Int J Tuberc Lung Dis, 9 (2005):1183-203.  Martinson, N.A., et al. "New Regimens to Prevent Tuberculosis in Adults With HIV Infection." NEJM365 July 7, 2011: 11-20. NHS. (2011). Your Health Your Choices. 21 March 2011. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/tuberculosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx 7 October 2012. Shargie E B and Lindtjorn B. ‘DOTS improves treatment outcomes and service coverage for tuberculosis in South Ethiopia: a retrospective trend analysis.’ BMC Public Health, 5.1 (June 2005):62. Volmink J and Garner P. “Directly observed therapy for treating tuberculosis.” Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2 (April 2006). Wang LJ, et al. ‘Imaging findings of urinary tuberculosis on excretory urography and computerized tomography.’ Journal of Urology,169 (2003):524-528. Read More