TUBERCULOSIS

               TUBERCULOSIS

Introduction:                  

Tuberculosis briefly known as TB is a deadly infectious disease caused by the mycobacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Mycobacterium bovis. Tuberculosis most commonly affects the lungs as (pulmonary TB) but can also affect the central nervous system, lymphatic system, circulatory system, genitourinary system, bones, joints, and even the skin.It is a highly contagious disease.It may be lifethreatening if left untreated.

Symptoms:                 

In many cases TB becomes an active disease, affecting the lungs is called pulmonary TB. Symptoms include a productive, prolonged cough of more than three weeks duration, chest pain, and coughing up blood. Systemic symptoms include fever, chills, night sweats, appetite loss, weight loss, paling, and those afflicted are often easily fatigued. If TB bacteria gain entry to the bloodstream from an area of damaged tissue they spread through the body and set up many foci of infection, all appearing as tiny white tubercles in the tissues. This severe form of TB disease is most common in infants and the elderly and is called miliary tuberculosis.

Classification:     

There are two major patterns of disease with TB:

Primary tuberculosis: seen as an initial infection, usually in children. The initial focus of infection is a small sub pleural granuloma accompanied by granulomatous hilar lymph node infection. Together, these make up the Ghon complex. In nearly all cases, these granulomas resolve and there is no further spread of the infection.  

Secondary tuberculosis: seen mostly in adults as a reactivation of previous infection (or reinfection), particularly when health status declines. The granulomatous inflammation is much more florid and widespread. Typically, the upper lung lobes are most affected, and cavitation can occur. When resistance to infection is particularly poor, a “miliary” pattern of spread can occur in which there are a myriad of small millet seed (1-3 mm) sized granulomas, either in lung or in other organs.When the infection spreads out of the lungs, extrapulmonary sites include the pleura, central nervous system in meningitis, lymphatic system in scrofula of the neck, genitourinary system in urogenital tuberculosis, and bones and joints in Pott’s disease of the spine. An especially serious form is disseminated, or miliary tuberculosis. Extrapulmonary forms are more common in immunosuppressed persons and in young children. Infectious pulmonary TB may co-exist with extrapulmonary TB, which is not contagious.

Causes:          

The cause of tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), is a slow-growing aerobic bacterium that divides every 16 to 20 hours; this is extremely slow compared to other bacteria.The M. tuberculosis complex includes 3 other mycobacteria which can cause tuberculosis: M. bovis, M. africanum and M. microti. The first two are very rare causes of disease in immunocompetent people, and M. microti is not usually pathogenic, although it is possible that the prevalence of M. microti infections has been underestimated. Other pathogenic mycobacteria are known, such as Mycobacterium leprae, Mycobacterium avium and M. kansasii. The last two are part of the group defined as Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM). Nontuberculous mycobacteria are mycobacteria that are not part of the M. tuberculosis complex, and do not cause leprosy, but do cause pulmonary diseases resembling tuberculosis.

Transmission:                     

TB is a highly contagious disease and can be easily spread by aerosol droplets expelled by people with the active disease of the lungs when they cough, sneeze, speak, or spit. The probability of transmission from one person to another depends upon the quantity of the infectious droplets expelled by the patient, the effectiveness of ventilation, the duration of exposure, and the virulence of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain.The chain of transmission can therefore be broken by isolating patients with active disease and starting effective anti-tuberculous therapy.

Diagnosis:                 

Tuberculosis can be a difficult disease to diagnose, due mainly to the difficulty in culturing this slow-growing organism in the laboratory. A complete medical evaluation for TB must include a medical history, a chest X-ray, and a physical examination.

Tuberculosis radiology is used in the diagnosis of TB. It may also include a tuberculin skin test, a serological test, microbiological smears and cultures.

Treatment:                

Treatment for TB uses antibiotics to kill the bacteria. The two antibiotics most commonly used are rifampicin and isoniazid. However, these treatments are more difficult than the short courses of antibiotics used to cure most bacterial infections as long periods of treatment around 6 to 12 months are needed to entirely eliminate mycobacteria from the body. Latent TB treatment usually uses a single antibiotic, while active TB disease is best treated with combinations of several antibiotics, to reduce the risk of the bacteria developing antibiotic resistance. Keep your immune system healthy. Make sure you eat plenty of healthy foods, get adequate amounts of sleep and exercise regularly to keep your immune system in top form.  

Prevention:               

 To prevent the infants from this life threatening disease, BCG vaccine is given at the time of birth. The vaccine isn’t very effective in adults. For the adults suffering from this disease it is essential to finish the entire course of medication. When you stop treatment early or skip doses, TB bacteria have a chance to develop mutations that are resistant to the most potent TB drugs. The resulting drug-resistant strains are much more deadly and difficult to treat.     

 Stay home during the first few weeks of treatment for active TB. Ensure adequate ventilation. Open the windows whenever possible to let in fresh air. Cover the mouth. It takes two to three weeks of treatment before you’re no longer contagious. During that time, be sure to cover your mouth with a tissue any time you laugh, sneeze or cough. Put the dirty tissue in a bag, seal it and throw it away. Also, wearing a mask when you’re around other people during the first three weeks of treatment may help lessen the risk of transmission.

Diet:      

It is very important to pay attention to diet. Avoid eating Toxins.  Diet should contain: Foods That Heal, Vegetable juices, Fats that Heal, Unrefined Sea Salt. Also, try to understand food tolerance.

Herbal Treatment:                            

Two 450-milligram capsules of echinacea can be an effective remedy. Forsythia (Forsythia suspensa) can be used as an antibacterial antiseptic.. The plant has been used clinically against TB, often combined with honeysuckle. To fight a variety of infections, use forsythia twigs in a 1:2 ratio with honeysuckle in a tea or hot lemonade.

Honeysuckle flower extracts are strongly active against several bacteria, including those that cause TB.         

Licorice is also an effective treatment for tuberculosis. Eucalyptus globulus is another herb used to treat TB. Try a drop or two added to water or tea. Don’t use more than a drop or two: This is powerful stuff.

Onion is also an effective remedy for TB.

Raw garlic is an effective treatment for TB. Drink this with a cup of warm water after every meal. Keep this up for several months.                                 

Propolis is a natural treatment for all chest conditions including Pulmonary Tuberculosis.

Serrapeptase is an effective natural treatment for the lungs including Pulmonary Tuberculosis.

 Black Seed oil has an unprecedented strengthening effect upon the immune system.  The protective and healing powers of Black Seed, the seeds from the plant Nigella Sativa, are excellent.              

For adequate silica supplies in the diet, take a single tbsp. of the herbal horsetail juice every day or you can also take a vegetal silica aqueous extract powder, dosage can be about three to four capsules along with the daily meals thrice every day.

The herbal nettle juice taken in a raw form is a rich source for the mineral calcium. This herbal remedy can be taken in the diet, for example, use some new nettle shoots, finely chop them up and sprinkle them on soups and salads, you can also sauté them with some onions for variety and eat these along with the meals. The herb can be rendered more appetizing by mixing the nettle juice with some carrot juice.                

A herbal tea can be prepared using one portion each of herbs such as the mullein, the bugleweed, the knotgrass and the sage, about three parts each of herbs such as the chamomile and the horsetail can also be added to help relieve the coughing which is often persistent in TB patients. Prepare this tea by suing about three cups of boiling water to steep a tsp. of the herb mix and daily drink three to four cups of this tea.              Intestinal health is promoted by garlic, which is an excellent antibacterial agent-it can be used in the long term to provide relief from many of the symptoms of the disease. Use about three capsules thrice a day. The resistance of the body to infection can be increased by taking some natural antibiotics such as the horseradish, the watercress and the juice of the nasturtium herb. Dosage of these herbs can be a tbsp. of herbal juice daily; alternately you can add some pesticide-free watercress and nasturtiums to a freshly prepared garden salad-all these natural remedies are without side effects.

AyurvedicTreatment:

Ashwaganda has many significant benefits. It helps the mind and body adapt better to stress. The root finds its efficiency in treatment of tuberculosis. A decoction of the root is used with long pepper and honey. This decoction is also beneficial in the treatment of scrofula, that is, tuberculosis of lymph glands, especially in the neck.

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