Attention, tuberculosis!
Tuberculosis is a dangerous infectious disease. The causative agent of tuberculosis is mycobacterium, which spreads from person to person mainly through the air: when coughing, sneezing, and most often affects the lungs. To infect a person, it is enough to inhale only a small amount of such bacteria. Mycobacteria of tuberculosis persist in the external environment: on surrounding objects, in poorly ventilated homes with insufficient lighting, especially in damp rooms, but they easily die under the influence of sunlight. Every sick person who releases mycobacterium tuberculosis and does not receive treatment can infect more than 10 people a year.
In the world, about one-third of the population has latent tuberculosis. In Russia, the infection rate is much higher. This means that people are infected with mycobacterium tuberculosis, but (as yet) have not contracted the disease and cannot transmit it. The risk of developing the disease in infected people is 10%.
Tuberculosis infection is almost in the body of everyone, it is simply silent. Microbes do not multiply and behave calmly due to the fact that the body's immune system is in order. However, the immune system can easily weaken if a person gets into unfavorable conditions. At such times, the probability of contracting tuberculosis increases significantly. For example, there is a very high risk of the disease in children who are not vaccinated against tuberculosis, in HIV-infected people, patients with diabetes mellitus or other chronic diseases, as well as in people with malnutrition who use tobacco and alcohol. People infected with HIV are 20-30 times more likely to develop tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis affects most often adults aged 25-45 years. However, you can get sick in any age group.
Tuberculosis, unlike other infections, has a chronic course, which increases the number of infected. The disease, as a rule, does not occur immediately: from infection to manifestation, it can take from several months to several years.
In the active form of tuberculosis, symptoms such as dry or sputum cough, weight loss, fever, night sweats, weakness, irritability, and tearfulness appear. At first, these symptoms may remain moderately pronounced for several months, and they may not always be suspected of tuberculosis. Such forms can be detected during preventive fluorographic examinations.
So, tuberculosis is contagious and very dangerous! The most important thing is to remember that a person can protect himself and his loved ones: you need to stop smoking, not abuse alcohol, improve your health by doing physical education and sports, and avoid stressful situations. It is very important to undergo annual preventive examinations for tuberculosis: children under 6 years old should have a Mantoux test, and children from 7 to 17 years old – Diaskintest, adults-fluorography. This will help not only to detect and quickly cure tuberculosis, but also to prevent its development in children.
Chief freelance specialist Pediatric phthisiologist,
health departments of the Lipetsk region,
Horuzhaya Galina Nikolaevna
