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Screens for Tuberculosis (TB) |
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Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious airborne infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. TB typically affects the lungs, and also can affect other organs and tissues such as the lymph nodes, bones, kidney, spine, and brain. TB can be spread by coughing, sneezing, or talking. Most TB can be cured by special medications. |
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In United States: |
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- 4.4 per 100,000 reported having TB
- In 2007, 13,293 new cases of TB were reported and 57% of new TB cases were in foreign-born persons.
- There were 646 people who died of TB in 2005
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In 2006 Worldwide, reported by the World Health Organization (WHO): |
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- 9.2 million new cases of active TB
- Approximately 1.7 million deaths resulted from TB
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Two types of TB infection |
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Latent TB: |
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- Infected with TB bacterium, but don’t get sick because the bacteria are inactive and suppressed by body defenses.
- TB bacteria can stay “silent” in the body for months, years, or decades, but also can increase in number and change to active TB when body immunity decreases.
- Do not spread the bacteria to others
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Active TB disease: |
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- People have weakened body immunity. Infected TB bacteria multiply and cause lung disease, then enter the blood and spread to other parts of body.
- Have symptoms of cough, fever, night sweats, weight loss, etc.
- Risk to spread the disease to others
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Tuberculin screening |
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TB test is the simplest way to detect TB infection which is recommended for the following high-risk groups: |
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- Have clinical or radiographic findings suggesting TB disease
- Contact with persons with confirmed or suspected contagious TB
- Have diseases with low body immunity such as chronic renal failure, malnutrition, lymphoma, and congenital or acquired immunodeficiency, or HIV
- Born, or parents were born, travel to, or adopted from high TB prevalence regions of the world (eg, Asia, Middle East, Africa, Latin America, former Soviet Union)
- Household contact with persons from high TB risk areas (with unknown TB status)
- Household contact with persons with active or previously active TB if treatment cannot be verified as adequate before exposure or treatment was initiated after the contact
- requently exposed to adults who are in nursing homes, HIV-infected, homeless, users of illicit drugs, or in jail
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