Respiratory Health
TB is curable and treated free of cost in India. The two things that turn a curable illness into a dangerous one are late diagnosis and stopping treatment early.
Any cough lasting more than two weeks should be evaluated for TB, regardless of your background, income or living conditions. TB is not confined to any one section of society.
Sputum testing with a molecular test such as CBNAAT is the primary investigation, and it identifies both the bacterium and resistance to rifampicin within hours. Chest X-ray supports the diagnosis. For TB outside the lungs, a biopsy or fluid sample from the affected site is usually needed.
All of this is available free of charge under the National TB Elimination Programme, at government facilities and through notified private providers. Nutritional support payments are also available to registered patients.
Standard drug-sensitive TB is treated for six months. Symptoms improve substantially within the first two to four weeks — and that improvement is exactly when patients stop, believing they are cured. They are not; the bacteria that remain are the hardiest ones.
Stopping early causes relapse and, more seriously, drug-resistant TB, which requires much longer treatment with more toxic drugs and has considerably lower cure rates. Completing the full course is the single most important thing a TB patient does.
This article is general health education written and reviewed by the Department of Pulmonology at SIMS. It is not a substitute for an examination, a diagnosis or the advice of your own treating doctor, and it cannot account for your history, medicines or reports. If a symptom is sudden or severe — chest pain, stroke symptoms, breathing difficulty, serious injury, seizures or heavy bleeding — call 9281862028 or come straight to the emergency department instead of reading further.
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