How is tuberculosis diagnosed?

Written by Xiong Hong Hai
Infectious Disease
Updated on March 18, 2025
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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 fever in its initial stage?

Tuberculosis is caused by an infection of the lungs by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and it is a very common infectious respiratory disease clinically. Typically, the early stage of tuberculosis is accompanied by mild fever to varying degrees, usually occurring in the afternoon, along with coughing, expectoration of blood, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and even chest pain, weight loss, fatigue, and night sweats as accompanying clinical symptoms. In the early stages, the diagnosis of tuberculosis in patients is generally made through these specific clinical symptoms, along with some sputum culture and chest X-ray examinations. Usually, most patients with early-stage tuberculosis will experience symptoms of low-grade fever, but these patients have a characteristic of fever that occurs in the afternoon and does not require antipyretics as it can return to normal by itself in the evening.

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Written by Xiong Hong Hai
Infectious Disease
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Can tuberculosis be cured?

Tuberculosis can actually be completely cured, primarily through anti-tuberculosis treatment. If it is confirmed to be active tuberculosis, systematic and standardized anti-tuberculosis treatment is required. Through scientific and reasonable anti-tuberculosis treatment and taking medication on time and according to guidelines, most tuberculosis patients can be cured, with a cure rate reaching 85%. The treatment includes an intensive phase of anti-tuberculosis treatment and a consolidation phase, with the total course of treatment being about six months. After being cured, it is not easy to relapse, but it is essential to take medications on time, adjust nutrition, modify work and rest schedules, and rest well.

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Written by Yuan Lin Yan
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Is tuberculosis contagious?

Not all cases of tuberculosis are infectious. Some tuberculosis cases are infectious in the early stages but become non-infectious after proper treatment. Patients with open tuberculosis are highly contagious because their sputum contains tuberculosis bacilli. These bacilli can be released into the air through coughing, sneezing, laughing, or loud speaking, and can cause infection when inhaled by others. Some tuberculosis patients do not have detectable bacilli in their sputum, and their infectiousness is relatively much lower.

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Written by Xiong Hong Hai
Infectious Disease
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Does tuberculosis cause a runny nose?

Individuals with tuberculosis, if accompanied by a cold and rhinitis, will also experience a runny nose. However, simple tuberculosis, without any upper respiratory infections or rhinitis, does not lead to a runny nose. Therefore, it is important to accurately analyze the issue. Common symptoms of tuberculosis include persistent coughing, coughing up phlegm, low-grade fever, night sweats, bloody sputum, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing, among others. Once tuberculosis is definitively diagnosed, it is essential to commence timely and scientifically sound anti-tuberculosis treatments. Most cases can be completely cured.

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Written by Wang Xiang Yu
Pulmonology
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Can tuberculosis be cured completely?

Whether tuberculosis can be completely cured varies from person to person. Most cases of tuberculosis, especially initial occurrences of pulmonary tuberculosis, can be cured in more than 80 to 90 percent of patients if they undergo standardized anti-tuberculosis treatment. However, it is essential that the treatment is standardized; it is not appropriate to simply take medication for one or two months and then stop when symptoms seem to disappear. The treatment duration for pulmonary tuberculosis is considered to be at least six months, and for some patients, it may even extend to a year. However, not all cases of pulmonary tuberculosis can be completely cured. A small percentage of patients may not achieve complete eradication due to resistance to tuberculosis bacteria or intolerance to the side effects of tuberculosis medications. In such cases, the prognosis might be poor, and some individuals may succumb to tuberculosis due to these factors.