Tuberculosis (TB)

Recently, tuberculosis is making a comeback, especially among with people with HIV/AIDS. If you have HIV, the risk of getting sick with TB is higher because of you’re weakened immune system. But, even though you can get sick with TB more easily if you have HIV (or activate inactive TB), it is important to remember that you can prevent and treat it.

What is TB? A serious disease caused by bacteria that usually affects the lungs.

How do I get it? TB is spread by germs through the air when someone coughs or sneezes, and by germs in a person's spit. You get TB if you're exposed to these germs and breathe them into your lungs. If you have HIV, TB is harder to treat.

Symptoms: TB usually makes you cough, have a fever and feel tired. It can usually be cured by a combination of drugs. But if left untreated, TB can kill people.

Prevention: Basically the best way to prevent getting TB is to avoid contact with people suffering from active TB of the lungs (you can’t catch TB in other parts of the body from other people). If you already have TB, you can get anti-TB medication to prevent getting active TB (prophylaxis).

Treatment: If you have active TB, recovery is possible in most cases through rigorous drug therapy and antibiotics. The medications used to prevent and treat TB are available free of charge in Canada. Talk to your doctor about the best options for you.