What does tuberculosis

Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. Tuberculosis TB. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Basic TB Facts. Minus Related Pages.

How TB Spreads. If they stop taking the drugs too soon, they can become sick again; if they do not take the drugs correctly, the germs that are still alive may become resistant to those drugs. TB that is resistant to drugs is harder and more expensive to treat. In some situations, staff of the local health department meet regularly with patients who have TB to watch them take their medications.

This is called directly observed therapy DOT. DOT helps the patient complete treatment in the least amount of time. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link.

Tuberculosis TB. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Fact Sheets. Minus Related Pages. What Are the Symptoms of TB? How is TB Spread? How is TB Disease Treated? Additional Information CDC. Questions and Answers About TB. To receive email updates about this page, enter your email address: Email Address. What's this? Links with this icon indicate that you are leaving the CDC website. Linking to a non-federal website does not constitute an endorsement by CDC or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the website.

You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link. Our service is free and we are here to help you.

Learn About Tuberculosis. Section Menu. Key Points While contagious, TB is not easily spread from person to person. About 1. About 10 million people have active TB worldwide. In the United States, TB is much less common. TB can almost always be treated and cured if you take medicine as directed. Who Is at Risk of TB? This includes: Family and friends of a person who is infected People from parts of the world with high TB rates, including India and parts of Asia and Africa.

People in groups with high rates of TB transmission, including the homeless, injection drug users and people living with HIV People who work or reside in facilities that house high risk people such as hospitals, homeless shelters, correctional facilities, nursing homes and residential homes for those with HIV Not everyone who is infected with the TB germ latent TB develops clinically active TB disease.

Previous: Tuberculosis TB. Next: Tuberculosis Symptoms and Diagnosis.