Bench mark assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Bench mark assignment - Essay Example However, the bacteria spreads faster and affects the internal systems such as the lungs. The major symptoms of the disease include tiredness, weight loss, stubborn and chronic coughs, night sweats and loss of appetite (Harvard University, 2010). Also, people with tuberculosis may have heavy sputum. An infection of the lungs makes breathing difficult, and a patient produces amphoric sounds when breathing. Tuberculosis is a highly infectious disease. It is spread through air. Individuals near an infected person are at a high risk of being infected. Normally, the bacteria are suspended in body fluid droplets suspended in the air when an infected person coughs, spit or sneezes. As such, any person who breathes that contaminated air is at a high risk of getting the disease. People at high risk include friends, family members, and health workers. Tuberculosis bacteria are highly resistant to medication. As such, it is important to detect the virus at early stages of infection. The treatment is done after a successful diagnosis that involves a test on the sputum, skin, and chest x-ray. Treatment depends on whether a person has only an infection or has active TB bacteria. Infected person may be treated using simple preventative drugs such as Isoniazid. However, advanced TB requires complex treatment. According to WHO, active cases of TB requires specialized drugs like Ethambutol, Pyrazinamide, Isoniazid and Rifampicin (2009). Tuberculosis medications are supposed to be taken accurately lest the bacteria becomes resistant to treatment. Tuberculosis is among the most deadly illnesses in the world and affects 2.3 billion people in the world (CDC). According to the American lung association, the threat of tuberculosis has been falling steadily from the 1990s (lung.org). In America, total deaths arising from the sickness has tumbled. In addition, most of the fresh infections are arising from immigrants. In fact, immigrant infections comprise 62% of total infections in the