10 Symptoms of TB
- 1. World Health Organization. (2020). Tuberculosis (TB). Retrieved November 13, 2020, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tuberculosis
- 2. Rosha, D. (2002). Prolonged Fever During The Treatment Of Pulmonary Tuberculosis. Medical Journal Armed Forces India, 58(2), 127-129. doi:10.1016/s0377-1237(02)80045-4
- 3. Mahmoudi, A. (1993). Pitfalls in the Care of Patients With Tuberculosis. Jama, 270(1), 65. doi:10.1001/jama.1993.03510010071032
- 4. Hernández-Garduño, E., & Pérez-Guzmán, C. (2007). Appetite and tuberculosis: Is the lack of appetite an unidentified risk factor for tuberculosis? Medical Hypotheses, 69(4), 869-872. doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2007.02.006
- 5. Saloman, L. (2016). Examining Disease Characteristics and Patterns of Weight Gain in Tuberculosis Treatment. Retrieved November 13, 2020, from https://www.contagionlive.com/view/examining-disease-characteristics-and-patterns-of-weight-gain-in-tuberculosis-treatment
7. Unintended Weight Loss
TB patients often experience rapid and excessive weight loss, also called wasting. Since this excessing weight loss often appeared as if the body was consumed from the inside out, it may be responsible for the term consumption that was historically used to describe the illness. Wasting may be associated with a loss of appetite, but that is not always the primary cause. Nausea and vomiting can cause nutritional efficiencies that also lead to weight loss and can be aggravated by certain treatment regimens.
Weight loss compounds active TB infections by undermining the immune system. Patients who do not meet nutritional needs are less able to fight off infection and more likely to die from their TB infection.5Saloman, L. (2016). Examining Disease Characteristics and Patterns of Weight Gain in Tuberculosis Treatment. Retrieved November 13, 2020, from https://www.contagionlive.com/view/examining-disease-characteristics-and-patterns-of-weight-gain-in-tuberculosis-treatment Consequently, weight gain is a sign that treatment is working.
Advertisement