Tuberculosis TB Prevention

Tuberculosis (TB), a contagious wasting disease can be prevented by appropriate measures.



The best preventive measure to control TB is to diagnose and treat the infection before it develops to the active form of the disease. It is very essential to complete the TB treatment because the TB bacteria grow slowly in the body and the treatment period is often long, up to 6-12 months. Although after few weeks a person with active TB might no longer be contagious and also feel better, it is important to finish the treatment course given by a specialist.



If the doses are skipped or the treatment is ceased then it can create a more dangerous condition (drug-resistant strains) which is difficult to treat. Besides this, other TB prevention measures listed below can help to protect yourself and others.

• Boost your immune system - It is very important to keep your immune system healthy for tuberculosis prevention; for this a healthy diet, good amount of sleep and regular exercise is essential.
• Utilize the available preventive therapies - Talk to your specialist if you test positive for latent TB and discuss the treatment mode to reduce your risk of developing active TB in near future.
  
  
  
  Although BCG vaccine is available to prevent TB, it is not very effective in adults. In infants it can prevent TB to spread outside lungs. However this vaccine is not generally recommended for common use because it also gives a false-positive result on a Monteux skin test. Many researchers are working to develop a more effective vaccine to prevent TB.
• Regularly get tested - If you have any disease which weakens your immune system like HIV, or you are a health care worker, live or work in prison, nursing home you have an increased risk of exposure to the disease. Thus experts suggest getting a skin test done annually to detect the disease at an early stage.

If you have active TB then try the following simple prevention of tuberculosis measures at home to keep your family and friends from getting sick.

• Maintain sufficient ventilation at home, let the fresh air flow in the house and keep the windows open whenever possible.
• During the first few weeks of treatment for active TB, stay at home and rest. Avoid going to school, at work and preferably sleep in a different room.
• If you have active TB then it would at least take 2-3 weeks of treatment before you are no longer contagious. So during these initial 2-3 weeks try to cover your mouth while taking, laughing, sneezing or coughing.
  
  
  
  Waste tissues should be sealed in a bag and discarded. To lessen the risk of transmission of disease wearing a mask will be convenient for you and others.