Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most common AIDS-defining illnesses to affect people with HIV. Both TB and HIV disproportionately affect people from sub-Saharan Africa.
There are a lot of myths and incorrect information about TB which can frighten people. Here are some of the facts:
It is a bacterial infection which can affect the lungs (pulmonary TB) or other parts of the body (extra pulmonary TB). Once someone has TB, their immune system might kill it off or it might suppress it. If it suppresses it, you have what is called ‘latent TB’. This means you have TB in your body but it won’t cause any symptoms.
If your immune system isn’t able to kill off or suppress the TB it can become ‘active’. Sometimes it becomes active many years later, for example if your immune system is damaged through HIV.
When someone with active TB in their lungs coughs or sneezes, spores containing the TB bacteria can be breathed in by someone else. You usually have to be in close proximity to someone for around eight hours to be infected with TB so it is more commonly spread between people who live together. You won’t catch it by sitting next to someone on the bus who has it, for example.
Yes, tuberculosis can be treated with a six-month combination of antibiotics. Around two weeks after starting treatment, most people will no longer be infectious. It is very important to complete your treatment otherwise the TB might not go away and could become drug resistant.
As HIV damages the immune system, it is harder for your body to fight off a new TB infection if you are living with HIV. Also, if you have latent infection from some years ago, a weakened immune system (caused by HIV) could cause it to reactivate and become active. Tuberculosis is one of the most common AIDS-defining illnesses but the good news is that it’s easy to detect and treat.
If you think you may have TB, let your HIV clinicians know and they can do some simple tests to find out and get it treated. It’s best to find out as soon as possible, so if you have any symptoms - such as a nasty cough, with phlegm, which doesn’t go away - tell a doctor.
TB won’t go away on its own once it is active and will only get worse; but once you start treatment you will soon be feeling better again.
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This article was last reviewed on 25/6/2012 by Administrator
Date due for the next review: 25/7/2012
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