(TB) Assignment Dec
(TB) Assignment Dec
PATHOLOGY:
● TB infection begins when the mycobacteria reach the alveolar air sacs
of the lungs, where they invade and replicate within endosomes of
alveolar macrophages.
● Macrophages identify the bacterium as foreign and attempt to eliminate
it by phagocytosis. During this process, the bacterium is enveloped by
the macrophage and stored temporarily in a membrane-bound vesicle
called a phagosome.
● The phagosome then combines with a lysosome to create a
phagolysosome.
● In the phagolysosome, the cell attempts to use reactive oxygen species
and acid to kill the bacterium.
● However, M. tuberculosis has a thick, waxy mycolic acid capsule that
protects it from these toxic substances.
● M. tuberculosis is able to reproduce inside the macrophage and will
eventually kill the immune cell.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:
Tuberculosis is spread from one person to the next through the air when
people who have active TB in their lungs cough, spit, speak, or sneeze.
DIAGNOSIS
Active tuberculosis:
● A chest X-ray and multiple sputum cultures for acid-fast bacilli are
typically part of the initial evaluation
● A definitive diagnosis of TB is made by identifying M. tuberculosis in a
clinical sample (e.g., sputum, pus, or a tissue biopsy). However, the
difficult culture process for this slow-growing organism can take two to
six weeks for blood or sputum culture. Thus, treatment is often begun
before cultures are confirmed.
● Nucleic acid amplification tests and adenosine deaminase testing may
allow rapid diagnosis of TB.
Latent tuberculosis
The Mantoux tuberculin skin test is often used to screen people at high risk for
TB.
Vaccines:
The only available vaccine as of 2021 is bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG). In
children it decreases the risk of getting the infection by 20% and the risk of
infection turning into active disease by nearly 60%
Treatment:
LATENT TB:
NEW ONSET:
RECURRENT TB: