Pulmonary Tuberculosis - Essay Example

"Pulmonary Tuberculosis" is a great example of a paper on the respiratory system. Pulmonary Tuberculosis is a disease of the respiratory system mainly affecting the lungs. The disease decreases the efficiency of the respiratory system to provide enough oxygen to the body. This is an infectious disease caused by acid-fast bacteria: Mycobacterium Tuberculosis. The bacteria are transmitted mainly by respiratory droplets i.e. by the saliva or sneezing of the affected person. The main signs and symptoms of the disease are a chronic cough with sputum, crackling sound in breathing, difficulty in breathing, fever, fatigue, difficulty in sleeping.

Elderly people, infants, and people with decreased immunity such as those infected with HIV and on immunosuppressive therapy are usually considered to be at high risk of getting infected and having the disease. The rate of infection also depends on the socioeconomic status and nutritional state of a person. This disease has been considered the second most common cause of death in the world after AIDS. “In 2010, 8.8 million people got infected with TB and 1.3 million died from it” (WHO 2011).

The main criterion for the diagnosis of the disease is considered to be the culture of the sputum of the infected person in the lab and separating the organism. However, other lab tests such as chest X-rays and CT scans of the chest can help in the fast diagnosis of the disease. There are usually two phases of the treatment of the disease: intensive phase, in which four first-line drugs namely Isoniazid, Rifampin, Ethambutol, Pyrazinamide are given, and in the second continuation phase, only Isoniazid and Rifampin are given.