Can tuberculosis be cured?

Written by Han Jian Hua
Infectious Disease
Updated on September 06, 2024
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Early diagnosis and standard treatment can often cure tuberculosis. Tuberculosis requires anti-tuberculosis treatment. Effective anti-tuberculosis treatment must follow five principles: early intervention, proper dosage, combination therapy, regular administration, and full-course treatment to ensure thorough treatment. Consistency is crucial; one must not stop taking medication, substitute drugs, or alter dosages on their own, as doing so not only makes it difficult to cure the disease but also increases the risk of developing drug resistance and complicates treatment further. Additionally, it is important to supplement nutrition appropriately and maintain a healthy diet in daily life. Since tuberculosis is a chronic, debilitating disease, it is advisable to consume foods rich in calories, proteins, and vitamins. Ensuring adequate rest and sleep is vital. Engaging in moderate physical activities, such as outdoor exercises, while avoiding strenuous activities and factors that could exacerbate conditions, such as overexertion, exposure to cold, and catching a cold, is also important.

Other Voices

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Written by Hu Xue Jun
Pulmonology
1min 36sec home-news-image

Symptoms of pulmonary tuberculosis

Now let me talk about the symptoms of tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which can invade many organs, with pulmonary tuberculosis being the most common. The main symptoms are respiratory symptoms and systemic symptoms. The respiratory symptoms are mainly manifested as coughing, expectoration for more than two weeks, or blood in the sputum, which are common suspicious symptoms of pulmonary tuberculosis. Generally, the cough is mild, either dry or with a small amount of mucus. When cavities form, the amount of sputum may increase, and if there is a secondary bacterial infection, the sputum may become purulent. If there is concomitant bronchial tuberculosis, it will manifest as an irritating cough. About one-third of patients will experience hemoptysis, and some may experience massive hemoptysis. If the tuberculosis lesions involve the pleura, it can manifest as chest pain. Dyspnea is more common in patients with caseous pneumonia or those with a large amount of pleural effusion. These are local symptoms. Systemic symptoms mainly manifest as fever, which is the most common manifestation, often as long-term afternoon fever, meaning it begins to rise in the afternoon or evening, drops in the morning, and then returns to normal. Some patients may also experience fatigue, night sweats, loss of appetite, weight loss, etc. Women of childbearing age may experience menstrual disorders, etc.

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Written by Wang Xiang Yu
Pulmonology
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Does tuberculosis cause fever?

Does tuberculosis cause fever? The answer is definitely yes. Fever is one of the most common clinical manifestations of tuberculosis. Many tuberculosis patients experience low fevers, and a minority of patients, such as those with caseous tuberculosis or tuberculous pleurisy, may experience high fevers that can recur and persist. Moreover, tuberculosis patients may sometimes also have concurrent bacterial infections, which can cause the fever to last longer and be more difficult to control.

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Written by Xiong Hong Hai
Infectious Disease
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How is tuberculosis diagnosed?

The diagnosis of tuberculosis primarily involves combining relevant clinical symptoms, such as whether there is cough, expectoration, low fever, night sweats, and blood in phlegm. It also requires considering the patient's chest imaging features, whether there is obvious infection, fresh exudation, cavities, as well as sputum tests. For example, if the sputum stain for acid-fast bacilli is positive, and the sputum culture is positive, using these comprehensive diagnostic methods, tuberculosis can be diagnosed, after which anti-tuberculosis treatment should be initiated.

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Written by Wang Chun Mei
Pulmonology
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Does tuberculosis cause headaches in its initial stage?

Tuberculosis is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by the infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the lungs, generally transmitted through respiratory droplets or direct contact. When infected with tuberculosis, symptoms that often appear include low-grade fever in the afternoons, coughing, expectoration, hemoptysis, chest pain, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. Some may experience weight loss, fatigue, and night sweats. Therefore, when patients with pulmonary tuberculosis exhibit an afternoon low-grade fever, it often leads to the occurrence of headaches. Therefore, it is very common for patients in the early stages of pulmonary tuberculosis to exhibit various symptoms, primarily due to the rise in body temperature.

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Written by Xiong Hong Hai
Infectious Disease
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Is tuberculosis contagious?

Actually, not all cases of tuberculosis are contagious; only those in which tuberculosis bacteria can be found in the sputum are infectious. Many cases are non-infectious. Among all cases of active tuberculosis, only about 30% have detectable tuberculosis bacteria in their sputum. The remaining 70% do not have detectable tuberculosis bacteria and thus are not contagious. Whether tuberculosis is contagious or not, once the diagnosis of tuberculosis is confirmed, scientific and rational comprehensive anti-tuberculosis treatment is required.