Symptoms of tuberculosis, Causes and Treatment of TB Disease Method

Tuberculosis (TB or TB) is an infectious disease of the respiratory tract caused by bacteria. This bacterium is a bacterium bacillus very strong so it takes a long time to treat it. These bacteria often infects the lungs (90%) compared to other parts of the human body.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that is still the world's attention. Until now, no single country that is free of tuberculosis. Mortality and morbidity due to mycobacterium tuberculosis germ is too high

The prevalence rate of tuberculosis patients in Indonesia is estimated at 289 per 100 thousand inhabitants and an incidence of 189 per 100 thousand inhabitants. In fact, 27 of the 1,000 inhabitants of dying as reported by the Directorate General of Disease Control and Environmental Health, Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia collected throughout 2011 on tuberculosis (TB) in Indonesia.

It also released the report that the number of new cases of tuberculosis increased networking to 8.46 per cent of the 744 TB patients in 2010 to 807 per 100,000 population in 2011. However, the good news cure rate in 2011 to reach the target of 83.7 percent and a treatment success rate in 2011 achieving the target of 90.3 percent.

Symptoms of TB Disease

Patients who develop these bacilli will usually have a fever but not too high that lasts a long time, is usually felt at night with night sweats. Sometimes an attack of fever like influenza and are intermittent. Other symptoms, decreased appetite and weight loss, coughing for more than 3 weeks (may be accompanied by blood), feeling unwell (malaise), and weak.

In order to anticipate this disease early, following symptoms of tuberculosis disease you need to know.

The main symptom

Persistent cough and phlegm for three weeks or more.

Additional symptoms are often encountered

    Sputum mixed with blood / blood cough
    Shortness of breath and pain in the chest
    Fever / chills more than a month
    Sweating at night without an obvious cause
    Weakness and lethargy
    Decreased appetite and weight loss


"The most easy to tell if someone is exposed to tuberculosis when he sweats at night without an obvious cause. Although it can not be directly assigned tuberculosis because they have been diagnosed, but it is one sign. If you limp, cough does not stop, pain in the chest, and the sweat on night, immediately immediately check, "added Dr. Arifin Nawas Sp (P), a tuberculosis clinical experts in the department of Friendship at the same place.

According to him, to make sure a person exposed to TB or not, the medical team perform the diagnosis by conducting direct microscopic examination of sputum (BTA) and the description of the logical radio (x-rays).

TB Infection Causes

The disease is caused by the bacteria mycobacterium tuberculosis infection that can attack the lungs, or other organs such as the lymph nodes, intestines, kidneys, uterus, bone, until the brain. TB can cause death and is one of the infectious diseases that cause of death in this country.

This time the discussion is pulmonary tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is highly contagious, namely through the fluid in the airways that go out into the air through coughing / sneezing and inhaled by people in the vicinity. Not all people who breathe the air containing TB germs will get sick.

In people who have a healthy body because of high endurance and good nutrition, the disease does not appear and the TB germs will "fall asleep". However, in those who are malnourished, decreased immune system / bad, or continuously breathing air containing TB germs due to a bad neighborhood, it will be easier infected with tuberculosis (becomes 'active TB') or it can also cause TB germs "asleep" in the body can be active again (reactivation).

TB infection is most often, namely the lungs, often appear without any symptoms are typical, for example, only a mild cough that is often overlooked and untreated. In fact, patients with pulmonary tuberculosis can easily transmit TB germs to other people and the TB germs continue to damage lung tissue to cause the typical symptoms when the disease has been quite severe.

Treatment of TB Disease

To diagnose tuberculosis, the doctor will perform a physical examination, particularly in the area of ​​the lung / chest, and may request additional examinations such as chest x-rays, laboratory tests of sputum and blood, as well as tuberculin skin test (Mantoux / PPD). TB treatment is long-term treatment, usually for 6-9 months with at least 3 drugs.

This condition is necessary diligence and discipline of the patient to take the drug and control to the doctor to be cured. Moreover, usually 2-3 weeks after taking the drug, the symptoms of TB will disappear so that patients become lazy to take medicine and control to the doctor.

If TB treatment is not completed, then this can be dangerous because often the drugs commonly used for tuberculosis have no effect on the TB germs (resistant). As a result, should be treated with other drugs that are more expensive and "hard". This should be avoided with tuberculosis treatment through to completion.

Long-term treatment for TB with many drugs will certainly impact the side effects for the patient. Side effects that usually occurs in the treatment of TB are abdominal pain, vision / hearing impaired, urinary such as coffee water, high fever, vomiting, itching and redness of the skin, burning sensation in the feet / hands, limp, to eye / skin yellow.

That is why it is important to always convey adverse effects arising from the doctor every time control so that the doctor can adjust the dose, switch to another drug, or perform laboratory tests if necessary.

Treatment for other diseases during TB treatment should also have to set up a doctor to prevent side effects more serious / dangerous. TB disease can be prevented by:

    Reducing contact with people with active TB disease.
    Maintain a good standard of living, with nutritious food, a healthy environment, and exercise.
    BCG vaccine (to prevent a more severe case of tuberculosis). The vaccine is routinely given to all children under five.
    Keep in mind that those who have been exposed to tuberculosis and treated, it can re-exposed to the same disease if not prevent it and maintain a healthy body.


Good information about the symptoms of TB disease, causes and ways of preventing the above is useful for you who need the information.