Is Tuberculosis (TB) Contagious?

Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 F (37 C), in practice, a person is usually not considered to have a significant fever until the temperature is above 100.4 F (38 C). Fever is part of the body's own disease-fighting arsenal; rising body temperatures apparently are capable of killing off many disease-producing organisms.

Get more information on bacterial skin infections, which bacteria cause food poisoning, sexually transmitted bacteria, and more. Explore the most common bacterial infections.

Chest pain is a common complaint by a patient in the ER. Causes of chest pain include broken or bruised ribs, pleurisy, pneumothorax, shingles, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, angina, heart attack, costochondritis, pericarditis, aorta or aortic dissection, and reflux esophagitis.

Diagnosis and treatment of chest pain depends upon the cause and clinical presentation of the patient's chest pain.

Chronic cough is a cough that does not go away and is generally a symptom of another disorder such as asthma, allergic rhinitis, sinus infection, cigarette smoking, GERD,  postnasal drip,  bronchitis,  pneumonia,  medications, and  less frequently tumors or other lung disease.

Chronic cough treatment is based on the cause, but may be soothed natural and home remedies.

Cipro (ciprofloxacin) and Levaquin (levofloxacin) are antibiotics prescribed to treat bacterial infections of the airways, lungs, bone, joints, and skin. Both Cipro and Levaquin belong to a class of antibiotics called fluoroquinolones. Fluoroquinolones stop the multiplication of bacteria by preventing the reproduction and repair of their genetic material (DNA).

Both Cipro and Levaquin cause side effects, for example, abdominal pain, rash, diarrhea, vomiting, and headache. Side effects of Cipro that do not occur with Levaquin include insomnia, dizziness, intestinal gas, and itching. Levaquin also can cause side effects like restlessness and constipation. Dosage for both antibiotics depends upon the type of infection. Drug interactions occur with both drugs. Cipro and Levaquin are not recommended to take if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

Cipro, generic name ciprofloxacin, is an antibiotic that belongs to a class of antibiotics called fluoroquinolones, prescribed for the treatment a variety of bacterial infections. Flagyl, generic name metronidazole, is an antibiotic prescribed for the treatment of parasites and anaerobic bacteria. Review side effects, dosage, drug interactions, and pregnancy and breastfeeding safety information prior to using these antibiotics.

Cipro, generic name ciprofloxacin, and Keflex, generic name cephalexin, are antibiotics that belong to different drug classes. Cipro is a type of fluoroquinolone and Keflex is a type of penicillin. Cipro and Keflex can cause similar side effects like abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, headache, and skin rashes.

Keflex has fewer serious side effects than Cipro, for example, anaphylaxis, a type of severe allergic reaction. Cipro and Keflex both can cause a serious infection with C. difficile, which causes severe, chronic diarrhea and may lead to pseudomembranous colitis. Cipro has many serious side effects, for example, Achilles tendon rupture, peripheral nerve pain, CNS problems, high blood sugar, abnormal heart rhythms, hepatitis, yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice), liver failure, acute kidney failure, cardiac arrest, and respiratory failure.

Cipro and Keflex are used to treat bacterial infections, for example, infections of the ears, skin, bone, urinary tract, and C. difficile (infectious diarrhea). Cipro also is used for the treatment of lower respiratory infections, sinusitis, chronic prostatitis, TB, typhoid fever, cystitis, the plague, anthrax poisoning, and bronchiectasis. Keflex also is used for the treatment of infections of the middle ear, tonsils (tonsillitis), bronchioles (bronchitis), laryngitis (larynx), and lungs (pneumonia).

Extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR TB) is a rare form of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) that's transmitted when TB germs are expelled into the air by sneezing, speaking, singing, or coughing.

Coughing is a reflex that helps a person clear their airways of irritants. There are many causes of an excessive or severe cough including irritants like cigarette and secondhand smoke, pollution, air fresheners, medications like beta blockers and ACE inhibitors, the common cold, GERD, lung cancer, and heart disease.Natural and home remedies to help cure and soothe a cough include stay hydrated, gargle saltwater, use cough drops or lozenges, use herbs and supplements like ginger, mint, licorice, and slippery elm, and don't smoke. Over-the-counter products (OTC)to cure and soothe a cough include cough suppressants and expectorants, and anti-reflux drugs. Prescription drugs that help cure a cough include narcotic medications, antibiotics, inhaled steroids, and anti-reflux drugs like proton pump inhibitors or PPIs, for example, omeprazole (Prilosec), rabeprazole (Aciphex), and pantoprazole (Protonix).

A lung segmentectomy is a procedure to remove the diseased lung without removing excess normal lung. Lung segmentectomy and limited pulmonary resection are performed due to bonchiectasis, early-stage lung cancer, lung nodules, tuberculosis, and suppurative lesions. Complications include air leakage, bleeding, residual airspace, infection of the pleural space, respiratory failure, and cardiac complications.

The lungs are a pair of spongy, air-filled organs located on either side of the chest (thorax). See a picture of the Lungs and learn more about the health topic.

Night sweats are severe hot flashes that occur at night and result in a drenching sweat. The causes of night sweats in most people are not serious, like menopause in women, sleep apnea, medications, alcohol withdrawal, and thyroid problems. However, more serious diseases like cancer and HIV also can cause night sweats. Your doctor will treat your night sweats depending upon the cause.

You may experience other signs and symptoms that are associated with night sweats, which depend upon the cause, but may include, shaking, and chills with a fever caused by an infection like the flu or pneumonia; unexplained weight loss due to lymphoma; women in perimenopause or menopause may also have vaginal dryness, mood swings, and hot flashes during the day; and low blood sugar in people with diabetes.

Other causes of night sweats include medications like NSAIDs (aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), and naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), antidepressants, sildenafil (Viagra), and abuse of prescription or illegal drugs and drug withdrawal; hormone disorders like pheochromocytoma and carcinoid syndrome; idiopathic hyperhidrosis; infections like endocarditis, AIDs, and abscesses; alcoholism and alcohol withdrawal; drug abuse, addiction, and withdrawal; and stroke.

A doctor or other health care professional can treat your night sweats after the cause has been diagnosed.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB). Symptoms and signs of TB include bloody sputum, fever, cough, weight loss, and chest pain. Treatment depends upon the type of TB infection.

The tuberculosis skin test is based on the fact that infection with M. tuberculosis produces a delayed-type hypersensitivity skin reaction to certain components of the bacterium. The standard recommended tuberculin test is administered by injecting 0.1mL of 5 TU (tuberculin units) PPD into the top layers of skin of the forearm. "Reading" the skin test means detecting a raised, thickened local area of skin reaction, referred to as induration. The area of induration (palpable, raised, hardened area) around the site of injection is the reaction to tuberculin.