Tuberculosis Flashcards
Describe the structure of mycobacterium tuberculosis?
- areobic non spore forming bacteria
- Cell wall: high lipid content - acid fast bacilli
- Generation time is slow - 12 hours
How is TB transmitted?
airborne transmission - droplets from a cough
What is primary TB?
Initial TB infection which may lead to clinical disease (leading to hematogenous spread)
What is latent TB?
Primary TB Infection contained by the immune system = No Disease = NOT SICK = NOT INFECTIOUS
Note: person has contact with M tuberculosis but has no signs of clinical disease
Tests for latent TB?
- tine test
- Igra tests
What is post-primary TB?
TB Infection which has progressed to a disease
1. pulmonary disease
2. extra-pulmonary disease
Treatment of TB?
RHZE
1. Rifampicin (R)
2. Isoniazid (INH) (H)
3. Pyrazinamide (Z)
4. Ethambutol (E)
Side effects of rifampicin?
- nausea
- skin
- AHA
- cholestase
Side effects of Isoniazid?
- PNP (Vit B6)
- hepatitis
Side effects of pyrazinamide?
- arthralgia
- gout
- hepatitis
Underlying principle for TB treatment?
- 2 months RHZE and 4 months RH
- 2 months RHZE and 1 month RHZE and 5 month RHE
Why do you need 3 active drugs?
- You need at least 3 active drugs because of the slow growth of mycobacteria, some are actively replicating while others atre more or less dormant
- You need bactericidal and sterilizing drugs!
What are the most potent TB drugs?
Rifampicin and INH are still the most potent drugs we have against TB
What is multi drug resistant TB?
- These are strains that are Rifampicin and Isoniazid resistant
- Rifampicin and INH are the mainstay of our current regular TB regimen!
- We often use the Gene-Xpert result of Rifampicin resistance as proxy
Clinical symptoms of TB in HIV?
- cough >2 weeks
- loss of weight
- night sweats
Problems with diagnosis of TB in HIV patients?
- HIV co-infected patients often have a lower bacterial load in sputum => Acid fast staining or Auramine stain not a good strategy
- They have more bacteria in the tissue but less in the bronchi (less cavities for example)
Diagnosis of TB in HIV patients on an X-ray?
The pattern of involvement in the lung resembles more the “primary” pattern of TB with hilar lymphadenopathy and infiltrates in the lower lobes not the “typical” post-primary pattern with upper lobe infiltrates and cavities
Typical post primary TB pattern on an x-ray?
- infiltrate - 85% upper
- cavitation commonly seen
- adenopathy was uncommon
- effusion may be present
Atypical primary TB patter on an X-ray?
- infiltrate - 60% upper and 40% lower (usually upper in children)
- cavitation is uncommon
- adenopathy is 30% unilateral>bilateral (coomon in chilfren)
- effusion may be present
Examination of the lung?
- Auscultation and percussion are as traditionally the initial exams
- respiratory rate and the oxygen saturation - estimate effectiveness of gas-exchange
- chest X-ray (CXR)
PCP symtoms?
- Progressive dyspnoea is the hallmark of PCP - may be associated with cough (usually non-productive)
- fever (usually mild)
- CD4 usually <200 !!
Note: PCP patients suffer from symptoms for an average of 3-4 weeks, while pneumonia patients usually seek attention in less than a week