Tuberculosis: a disease without boundaries

Abstract

Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) that usually affects the lungs leading to severe coughing, fever, and chest pains. Although current research in the past four years has provided valuable insight into TB transmission, diagnosis, and treatment, much remains to be discovered to effectively decrease the incidence of and eventually eradicate TB. The disease still puts a strain on public health, being only second to HIV/AIDS in causing high mortality rates. This review will highlight the history of TB as well as provide an overview of the current literature on epidemiology, pathogenesis and the immune response, treatment, and control of TB. In this race to combat a disease that knows no boundaries, it is necessary to have a conceptual and clear understanding of TB overall with the hope of providing better treatment through novel and collaborative research and public health efforts.

Keywords: Animal models; BCG; Clinical manifestation; Control; DOTS; Epidemiology; HIV; History; IGRAs; Immunological response; LTBI; MDR; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Stop TB Strategy; TST; Transmission; Treatment; Tuberculosis.