Myobacterium Tuberculosis (TB): What It Is and How to Treat It

Imagine yourself coughing for more than 3 weeks with pain in your chest. Now picture coughing up blood or sputum when there should only be phlegm or nothing at all. You have lost your appetite, experience weakness and fatigue, endure night sweats and a fever. Your first instinct is to see a physician, which confirmed your worst nightmare; an infection with the scariest rod-shaped/bacillus monster – The Myobacterium Tuberculosis (Mtb).

Mycobacterium Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection which usually attacks the lungs. However, the Tuberculosis bacteria can attack any organ in the central nervous system, lymphatic system and circulatory system. If the bacteria are not treated properly, it can be fatal. There are, however, people infected with Tuberculosis but never show symptoms of the disease. How is this phenomenon possible? The answer lies in the differences between Latent Tuberculosis and Active Tuberculosis Disease.

Tuberculosis Disease is the term used when TB bacteria become active and start multiplying in your body. The rapid multiplication of the TB bacteria inhibits the carrier’s immune system to stop the bacteria from growing in a timely manner which causes Tuberculosis to become active. Tuberculosis is a highly infectious disease usually contracted through the air. This airborne bacterium can infect anyone, though not all will show symptoms of the disease. Conventional TB diagnosis tends to rely on antiquated tests such as “sputum smear microscopy, culture, tuberculin skin test, and chest radiography” (Pai & O’Brien, 2008). However, these tests have several limitations. These tests perform poorly in populations affected by the HIV epidemic

In Latent Tuberculosis, the TB germs are dormant/asleep in a carrier’s body. This results in the TB bacteria living in the body without making it sick. As stated earlier, TB bacterium is an airborne bacterium. However, there are many individuals who breathe in the TB bacteria and become infected but the body is able to fight the bacteria to stop them from growing. People with latent TB infection do not feel sick and do not show any symptoms. Individuals with latent TB infection are also non-infectious and cannot spread the TB bacteria to others. The latent TB phase can last for a very long time, even decades. In fact, many people who have latent TB infection never develop Active Tuberculosis Disease. Some people develop TB disease soon after becoming infected, within weeks, before their immune system can fight the TB bacteria. Other people may get sick years later when their immune system becomes weak for another reason.