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. Read more: Tuberculosis (TB) Article
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SLIDESHOW
Bacterial Infections 101: Types, Symptoms, and Treatments See SlideshowRelated Disease Conditions
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Night Sweats
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.
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Swollen Lymph Nodes (Glands)
Lymph nodes help the body's immune system fight infections. Causes of swollen lymph nodes (glands) may include infection (viral, bacterial, fungal, parasites). Symptoms of swollen lymph nodes vary greatly, but may include fever, night sweats, toothache, sore throat, or weight loss. Causes of swollen lymph nodes also vary, but may include cancer, the common cold, mono, chickenox, HIV, and herpes. The treatment of swollen lymph nodes depends upon the cause.
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Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug abuse and addiction is a chronic disease that causes drug-seeking behavior and drug use despite negative consequences to the user and those around him. Though the initial decision to use drugs is voluntary, changes in the brain caused by repeated drug abuse can affect a person's self-control and ability to make the right decisions and increase the urge to take drugs. Drug abuse and addiction are preventable.
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What Are the 3 Rarest Blood Types?
The red blood cells or RBCs present in the blood carry certain molecules, called antigens, on their surface that determine what blood group you have. The antigens depend on the genes you inherit from your parents. These antigens may be grouped in various categories to form a system for blood typing called the ABO system. The EldonCard blood type test kit uses the basic forward antibody technique of blood hematology for quick and simple determination of your blood type.
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Diabetes (Type 1 and Type 2)
Diabetes is a chronic condition characterized by high levels of sugar (glucose) in the blood. The two types of diabetes are referred to as type 1 (insulin dependent) and type 2 (non-insulin dependent). Symptoms of diabetes include increased urine output, thirst, hunger, and fatigue. Treatment of diabetes depends on the type.
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Enlarged Spleen (Splenomegaly) Symptoms, Signs, Causes,Treatment
An enlarged spleen or splenomegaly is generally caused by other diseases or conditions such as infections, cancers, blood disorders, or decreased blood flow. Symptoms of an enlarged spleen are often unnoticed. A feeling of fullness after eating a small amount of food and not being able to eat large meals may be a symptom of an enlarged spleen. Treatment for an enlarged spleen depends upon the cause.
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Chest Pain
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.
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Chronic Cough
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.
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What Are Eye Floaters?
Eye floaters are deposits or condensation that form in the eye's vitreous humor. These deposits cast shadows on the retina, and as the eye moves, the deposits shift position, making it appear as though the shadows are moving or floating.
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Fatigue and Exhaustion
Fatigue can be described in various ways. Sometimes fatigue is described as feeling a lack of energy and motivation (both mental and physical). The causes of fatigue are generally related to a variety of conditions or diseases, for example, anemia, mono, medications, sleep problems, cancer, anxiety, heart disease, and drug abuse.Treatment of fatigue is generally directed toward the condition or disease that is causing the fatigue.
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Fever
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.
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Pleurisy (Pleuritis)
Pleurisy, an inflammation of the lining around the lungs, is associated with sharp chest pain upon breathing in. Cough, chest tenderness, and shortness of breath are other symptoms associated with pleurisy. Pleurisy pain can be managed with pain medication and by external splinting of the chest wall.
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Is Tuberculosis (TB) Contagious?
Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes tuberculosis (TB). TB may be transmitted when an infected person sings, sneezes, coughs, or talks. TB symptoms and signs include coughing bloody sputum, night sweats, severe cough, fever, chills, fatigue, and weight loss.
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Neutropenia
Neutropenia is a marked decrease in the number of neutrophils, neutrophils being a type of white blood cell (specifically a form of granulocyte) filled with neutrally-staining granules, tiny sacs of enzymes that help the cell to kill and digest microorganisms it has engulfed by phagocytosis. Signs and symptoms of neutropenia include gum pain and swelling, skin abscesses, recurrent ear and sinus infections, sore mouth, low-grad fever, pneumonia-like symptoms, and pain and irritation around the rectal area. Neutropenia has numerous causes, for example, infections (HIV, TB, mono); medications (chemotherapy); vitamin deficiencies (anemia); bone marrow diseases (leukemias), radiation therapy, autoimmune destruction of neutrophils, and hypersplenism. Treatment of neutropenia depends upon the cause and the health of the patient.
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Cauda Equina Syndrome
Cauda equina syndrome is a medical emergency condition that is caused by the uncommon compression of the nerves at the end of the spinal cord. Symptoms of cauda equina syndrome include lower back pain, tingling and/or numbness in the buttocks and lower extremities, bowel or bladder incontinence, and weakness in the legs. Causes of cauda equina syndrome include herniated discs, hematomas, or infection. Treatment is generally prompt surgery.
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Lung Anatomy
The lungs are primarily responsible for the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the air we breathe and the blood. Eliminating carbon dioxide from the blood is important, because as it builds up in the blood, headaches, drowsiness, coma, and eventually death may occur. The air we breathe in (inhalation) is warmed, humidified, and cleaned by the nose and the lungs.
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What Is the Most Common Cause of Bronchiectasis?
Bronchiectasis is a chronic lung condition in which the bronchi (tube-like passageways that transfer air within the lungs) get permanently damaged and widened. The most common causes of bronchiectasis are pneumonia, pertussis, tuberculosis and non-tuberculosis mycobacterium.
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Can Tuberculosis (TB) Be Completely Cured?
Learn what medical treatments can help ease your TB symptoms and help you manage this condition.
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Amyloidosis
Amyloidosis is a group of diseases resulting from abnormal deposition of certain proteins (amyloids) in various bodily areas. The amyloid proteins may either be deposited in one particular area of the body (localized amyloidosis) or they may be deposited throughout the body (systemic amyloidosis). There are three types of systemic amyloidosis: primary (AL), secondary (AA), and familial (ATTR). Primary amyloidosis is not associated with any other diseases and is considered a disease entity of its own. Secondary amyloidosis occurs as a result of another illness. Familial Mediterranean Fever is a form of familial (inherited) amyloidosis. Amyloidosis treatment involves treating the underlying illness and correcting organ failure.
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Septic Arthritis
Septic arthritis, or infectious arthritis, is infection of one or more joints by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. Symptoms and signs of septic arthritis include fever, joint pain, chills, swelling, redness, warmth, and stiffness. Treatment involves antibiotics and the drainage of the infected joint.
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Heterochromia Iridis
Heterochromia iridis is a rare condition that describes people with two different colored eyes. There are many potential underlying causes of heterochromia iridis including genetic and acquired conditions. Heterochromia iridis comes in three types: sectorial heterochromia, central heterochromia, and completely heterochromia. The condition is often recognized by a parent (in the case of an affected infant) or by the patient or a family member (acquired heterochromia iridis). Treatment includes addressing the underlying condition or wearing tinted contact lenses to make the eyes look more uniform. The majority of people with heterochromia iridis have an excellent prognosis.
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Pericarditis (Symptoms, ECG, Types, Causes, Treatment)
Pericarditis is the inflammation of the pericardial sac that surrounds the heart. The causes of pericarditis include injury from heart attack, heart surgery, trauma, viral or fungal infection, HIV, tumors, mixed connective tissue disease, metabolic disease, medication reactions, or unknown reasons. Treatment for pericarditis is generally medication, however, sometimes surgery is necessary.
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The Difference Between Multidrug-Resistant TB MDR-TB and Extensively Drug-Resistant TB XDR-TB
Multidrug resistance (MDR) is when both isoniazid and rifampicin fail to work against TB infection. Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) is a form of TB that is resistant to at least four of the core anti-TB drugs. XDR-TB involves resistance to the two most powerful anti-TB drugs, namely isoniazid and rifampicin.
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Portal Hypertension
Portal hypertension is most commonly caused by cirrhosis, a disease that results from scarring of the liver. Other causes of portal hypertension include blood clots in the portal vein, blockages of the veins that carry the blood from the liver to the heart, and a parasitic infection called schistosomiasis. Symptoms of portal hypertension include varices (enlarged veins), vomiting blood, blood in the stool, black and tarry stool, ascites (abnormal fluid collection within the peritoneum, the sac that contains the intestines within the abdominal cavity), confusion and lethargy, splenomegaly or enlargement of the spleen, and decreased white blood cell counts.
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AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome)
AIDS is the advanced stage of HIV infection. Symptoms and signs of AIDS include pneumonia due to Pneumocystis jiroveci, tuberculosis, toxoplasmosis, seizures, weakness, meningitis, yeast infection of the esophagus, and Kaposi's sarcoma. Anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) is used in the treatment of AIDS.
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Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection left untreated causes AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a type of virus called a retrovirus, which can infect humans when it comes in contact with tissues that line the vagina, anal area, mouth, or eyes, or through a break in the skin. HIV infection is generally a slowly progressive disease in which the virus is present throughout the body at all stages of the disease. Three stages of HIV infection have been described. The initial stage of infection (primary infection), which occurs within weeks of acquiring the virus, often is characterized by the flu- or mono-like illness that generally resolves within weeks. The stage of chronic asymptomatic infection (meaning a long duration of infection without symptoms) lasts an average of eight to 10 years without treatment. The stage of symptomatic infection, in which the body's immune (or defense) system has been suppressed and complications have developed, is called the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The symptoms are caused by the complications of AIDS, which include one or more unusual infections or cancers, severe loss of weight, and intellectual deterioration (called dementia). When HIV grows (that is, by reproducing itself), it acquires the ability to change (mutate) its own structure. These mutations enable the virus to become resistant to previously effective drug therapy. The goals of drug therapy are to prevent damage to the immune system by the HIV virus and to halt or delay the progress of the infection to symptomatic disease. Therapy for HIV includes combinations of drugs that decrease the growth of the virus to such an extent that the treatment prevents or markedly delays the development of viral resistance to the drugs. The best combination of drugs for HIV are those that effectively suppress viral replication in the blood and also are well tolerated and simple to take so that people can take the medications consistently without missing doses.
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Can Tuberculosis Be Cured?
Tuberculosis (TB) infection is caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It mostly affects your lungs but it can also affect other parts of the body including the lymph glands, brain, kidneys, bowels or bones. Tuberculosis (TB) is 100% curable if treated with the approved four drug combination for a minimum of six months.
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Scars
Scar formation is a natural part of the healing process after injury. The depth and size of the wound incision and the location of the injury impact the scar's characteristics, but your age, heredity and even sex or ethnicity will affect how your skin reacts.
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Uveitis
Uveitis is inflammation of the eye. Symptoms include blurred vision, eye pain, eye redness, photophobia, and floaters. Treatment may involve prescription eyedrops, antibiotics, and wearing dark glasses.
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What Is Iritis?
Iritis is inflammation of the iris, the colored portion of the eye. Symptoms include a red, painful eye, blurry vision, and light sensitivity. Treatment usually involves cortisone eyedrops.
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Optic Neuritis
Optic neuritis is inflammation of the optic nerve, the structure that connects the eye to the brain. The precise cause of optic neuritis is unknown, but it is thought to be a type of autoimmune disorder. Optic neuritis most commonly develops due to an autoimmune disorder that may be triggered by a viral infection.
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What Is Bronchiectasis?
Bronchiectasis has three types: cylindrical bronchiectasis, saccular or varicose bronchiectasis, and cystic bronchiectasis. Causes of bronchiectasis include infection, environmental exposure, drug or alcohol abuse, and alpha-1 antitrypsin (congenital). Symptoms of bronchiectasis include shortness of breath, fatigue, chronic cough, bloody sputum, and wheezing. Treatment for bronchiectasis includes antibiotics and possibly surgery.
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Is Pleurisy Contagious?
Pleurisy or pleuritis is an inflammation of the lining around the lungs. Some of the causes of pleurisy include TB, the flu, heart attack, some forms of arthritis, and lupus. The treatment for pleurisy is generally aimed at the underlying cause of pleurisy.
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How Do Guys Get Epididymitis?
Epididymitis (inflammation of the testicular tube) is common in young men between the ages of 19 and 35 years old. Men often get epididymitis for various reasons that include sexually transmitted infections, other infections, blockage in the urethra, side effects from medications and trauma.
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Aspergillus Infection (Aspergillosis)
An Aspergillus infection is a fungal infection. Signs and symptoms can include cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, bloody sputum, difficulty breathing, and chest and/or joint pain. Treatment depends on the type and severity of the disease.
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Superior Vena Cava Syndrome
Superior vena cava syndrome is compression of the superior vena cava vein located in the upper chest. Causes of superior vena cava include lung cancer, lymphoma, other cancers in the chest, blood clots in the superior vena cava, or infection. Symptoms of the syndrome include shortness of breath. Superior vena cava syndrome is diagnosed by ultrasound, chest X-ray, CT scan, and in some cases biopsy. Treatment depends upon the cause of the syndrome.
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Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone (SIADH)
Syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH) is common in older individuals and happens when too much antidiuretic hormone releases and causes water retention and a low sodium level. There are several causes of SIADH. Symptoms include seizures, irritability, elevated systolic blood pressure, and hyponatremia, among others. Treatment involves restricting fluids, treating the underlying cause, and taking medications to decrease the antidiuretic hormone's effect on the kidneys.
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What Causes Tuberculosis?
Learn about the causes of tuberculosis and what to do if you are exposed.
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What Does Tuberculosis Do to the Body?
Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that primarily affects the respiratory system and includes symptoms of sickness or weakness, fever, and more.
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Where Does Tuberculosis Come From?
Tuberculosis (TB) is an illness caused by a bacteria will get into your lungs and cause an infection there, but it can also attack other areas of your body, including your kidneys, brain, and spine. Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease that comes from a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
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Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (XDR TB)
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.
Treatment & Diagnosis
- Weight Loss
- Shortness of Breath (Dyspnea)
- Loss of Appetite
- Fatigue, Tiredness, and Lethargy
- Chills
- Brittle Nails
- Bloody Sputum (Hemoptysis)
- Swollen Lymph Nodes (Lymphadenopathy)
- Chest Pain
- Drainage of Pus
- Fever
- Chronic Cough
- Hoarseness
- Excessive Sweating (Hyperhidrosis)
- Clubbing
- Decreased Appetite
- Inability to Exercise (Exercise Intolerance)
- Tuberculosis (TB)
- Blood in Semen
- Low Testosterone (Low T)
- Eye Floaters
- How to Choose a Doctor
- Doctor: Checklist to Take To Your Doctor's Appointment
- Doctor: Getting the Most from Your Doctor's Appointment
Medications & Supplements
- Cipro vs. Flagyl
- Cipro, XR (ciprofloxacin) vs. Keflex (cephalexin)
- Cipro vs. Levaquin
- isoniazid
- rifampin - oral, Rifadin, Rimactane
- rifampin/isoniazid/pyrazinamide - oral, Rifater
- Side Effects of Isoniazid (isoniazid)
- ethambutol - oral, Myambutol
- acetylcysteine
- pyrazinamide - oral
- isoniazid - oral
- rifampin/isoniazid - oral, Rifamate
- rifapentine - oral, Priftin
- rifampin
- cycloserine - oral, Seromycin
- Rifadin (rifampin, isoniazid and pyrazinamide)
- ethionamide - oral, Trecator
- capreomycin - injection, Capastat
Prevention & Wellness
- Tuberculosis Decline May Lead to Surge
- TB Outbreak May Be Linked to Bone Repair Product
- New Weapon in Fight Against Multidrug-Resistant TB
- Imaging Scans May Lead to Shorter TB Treatment
- TB Vaccine More Powerful When Given Intravenously
- Vaccine Might Help Prevent Active TB in Those Infected
- Health Tip: Getting a Tuberculosis Skin Test
- Childhood TB Shot May Offer Long-Term Protection from Lung Cancer
- Deer Can Give You Tuberculosis: CDC
- TB Cases Drop Among the Young, But Racial Disparities Persist
- FDA Approves Drug for Most Deadly Form of TB
- Pretomanid Approved for Treatment of Drug-Resistant TB
- Experimental Vaccine Shows Promise in Preventing TB
- Poor Health Care Linked to 5 Million Deaths Worldwide a Year
- As U.S. Heroin Use Reaches 20-Year High, Cost to Society Soars
- Artificial Intelligence May Help Combat TB in Remote Regions
- Infections More Common in People With Schizophrenia
- Experimental Medicine Might Rescue People With Drug-Resistant HIV
- Nearly 3 Percent of U.S. Adults Have Weakened Immunity: Study
- Global Efforts to Combat TB Epidemic Falling Short
- Drug-Resistant Germs Thrive in America's Corroding Water Systems
- FDA Approves New Biological Drug for Rheumatoid Arthritis
- U.S. Cases of Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea Rise Fourfold in One Year
- Inflectra Approved as 'Biosimilar' to Remicade
- Tuberculosis Decline in U.S. Has Stalled, CDC Reports
- Screen High-Risk Adults for Tuberculosis, Experts Say
- New TB Test May Help Simplify Diagnosis
- TB Cases Falling for Foreign-Born People in U.S.
- Toxic Chemicals May Weaken Infants' Response to TB Vaccine
- More Than Half of U.S. States Not Well Prepared for Disease Outbreaks: Study
- CDC: Too Few Schools Teach Prevention of HIV, STDs, Pregnancy
- Assessing Health Issues of Child Refugees
- Doctors Save Life of U.S. Child With Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis
- Pediatricians' Group Urges Cuts in Antibiotic Use in Livestock
- Swiss Report Highlights Danger of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis
- E-Pillboxes Improve Medication Adherence, Study Finds
- U.S. Health Officials Search for Those Exposed to Drug-Resistant TB
- New Trial Tests Whether TB Shot Fights Type 1 Diabetes
- U.S. Agrees to Help Launch 'African CDC'
- 18th Century Mummies Reveal How TB Spread Through Europe
- Decline in U.S. Tuberculosis Rates Slows: CDC
- New Antibiotic May Combat Resistant Bacteria
- Where Ebola Battles Are Won
- Lowly House Fly's Gene Map Causes Buzz
- Infection Rates in Nursing Homes on the Rise: Study
- Lung Infections May Hamper Ability to Detect Lung Cancer
- Ebola Outbreak Could Infect 20,000 People, U.N. Says
- Seals, Sea Lions Helped Global Spread of TB, Study Finds
- Common Respiratory Diseases Tied to Lung Cancer Risk
- AIDS Epidemic May Be Subsiding: Report
- TB Rates Among Children May Be Higher Than Estimated
- Unwanted Germs Can Land, Last Inside Jetliners
- Tuberculosis in U.S. Hits Record Low: CDC
- Health Tip: Risk Factors for Developing Tuberculosis
- Vinegar May Be Cheap, Safe Way to Kill TB Germ
- Could Stem Cells Cure Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis?
- New Test Detects TB and Antibiotic Resistance
- Shortage of Key Drug Hampering U.S. Efforts to Control TB: Report
- Report Calls for Better U.S. Efforts to Fight Counterfeit Drugs
- TB Drug Shortages Put U.S. Patients in Peril, Study Finds
- Sirturo Approved for Multi-Drug Resistant TB
- Sinus Infections Linked to Nasal Washing
- 'Alarming' Rise Seen in Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis
- New Immune-Deficiency Illness Emerging in East Asia
- Studies Question Safety of Tattoo Ink
- Can TB Vaccine Stop Type 1 Diabetes?
- Cell-Based 'Tracking Devices' Might Help Monitor Treatments
- New Medicine Might Fight Drug-Resistant TB, Study Says
- U.S. Tuberculosis Cases Hit Record Low, CDC Says
- Malaria's Global Death Toll Much Higher Than Thought
- Health Highlights: Jan. 16, 2012
- As Gastric Banding Increases, So May Complications
- CDC Issues New TB Treatment Guidelines
- Most Americans With HIV Don't Have Infection Under Control
- Research Sheds Light on Vitamin D's Role in Immunity
- Current Smoking Rates Could Lead to Millions of TB Deaths
- New Guidelines Suggest Higher Doses of Vitamin D
- Decade's Top 10 Public Health Achievements
- Pill Cuts Rheumatoid Arthritis Symptoms
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