Although Tuberculosis (TB) can affect nearly every part of the body, it mainly targets the respiratory system. It is spread through air molecules from an infected person's coughing and sneezing. Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection; the germs' scientific name is Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

There are two types of TB: active and latent. The difference between a person with latent TB and a person with active TB is that a person with latent TB has no symptoms, does not feel sick, is not contagious, and has a positive skin test. The bad part about that is they don't know they have it. When infected by latent TB, a person has a normal chest x-ray and a negative sputum smear and should consider treatment for latent TB to prevent active TB.
Tuberculosis lung
Lung with Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis bacteria
Around 1970, the United States let down its guard by stopping the use of vaccines, and TB began spreading again. In 2005, there were 14,000 reported cases of TB in the whole world. Tuberculosis has been around since 2000 B.C.
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Lung diagram

A person with active TB has symptoms that include

  • a bad cough for three or more weeks
  • pain in the chest
  • coughing up blood
  • weakness or fatigue
  • weight loss
  • no appetite
  • chills
  • fever
  • night sweats
All the women whom Edgar Allan Poe ever loved died from tuberculosis.
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Tuberculosis: Description

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