Fact Sheets | General | Tuberculosis Information for Employers in Non-Healthcare Settings | TB (2024)

What is tuberculosis (TB)?

Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis that are spread from person to person through the air. TB usually affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body, such as the brain, the kidneys, or the spine. Not everyone infected with TB bacteria becomes sick. As a result, two TB-related conditions exist: latent TB infection and TB disease.

What is latent TB infection?

Persons with latent TB infection (LTBI) do not feel sick and do not have any symptoms, but usually have a positive reaction to the tuberculin skin test or TB blood test. They are infected with TB bacteria, but do not have TB disease. Persons with LTBI are not infectious and cannot spread TB infection to others.

What is TB disease?

In some people, TB bacteria overcome the defenses of the immune system and begin to multiply, resulting in the progression from latent TB infection to TB disease. Some people develop TB disease soon after infection, while others never develop TB disease or develop it later in life when their immune system becomes weak. Persons with TB disease usually have symptoms, are considered infectious, and may spread TB bacteria to others.

A person with latent TB infection & A person with TB disease
A person with latent TB infection (LTBI)A person with TB disease
• Usually has a TB skin test or blood test result indicating TB infection• Usually has a TB skin test or blood test result indicating TB infection
• Has a normal chest x-ray and a negative sputum test• May have an abnormal chest x-ray, or positive sputum smear or culture
• Has TB bacteria in his/her body that are alive, but inactive• Has active TB bacteria in his/her body
• Does not feel sick• Usually feels sick and may have symptoms such as coughing, fever, and weight loss
• Cannot spread TB bacteria to others• May spread TB bacteria to others
• Needs treatment for latent TB infection to prevent TB disease• Needs treatment for TB disease

How is TB spread?

TB bacteria are released into the air when a person with TB disease of the lungs or throat coughs, sneezes, speaks, or sings. These bacteria can stay in the air for several hours, depending on the environment. Persons who breathe in the air containing these TB bacteria can become infected; this is called latent TB infection. A person with latent TB infection cannot spread TB to others.

Persons with TB disease are most likely to spread the bacteria to other people they spend time with every day, such as family members or coworkers. Anyone who has been around someone who has TB disease should go to the doctor or local health department for TB tests.

TB is not spread through eating utensils, countertops, chairs, doorknobs, or other surfaces where a TB patient has been.

What are the symptoms of TB?

The general symptoms of TB disease include feelings of sickness or weakness, weight loss, fever, and night sweats. The symptoms of TB disease of the lungs may also include coughing, chest pain, and the coughing up of blood. Symptoms of TB disease in other parts of the body depend on the area affected.

What should I do if an employee reports having a positive TB test or that he or she has been in contact with someone who has TB?

It is important to remember that only a person with TB disease can transmit TB bacteria to others. If an individual has been around someone with TB disease, he or she can get TB infection. However, not everyone infected with TB germs becomes sick. A person with latent TB infection cannot spread germs to other people, but can develop TB disease in the future.

For additional information, contact your local or state TB control program.They can advise you about what should be done.

What will happen after I contact my local or state TB control program for assistance?

The TB control program will determine if the employee has latent TB infection or TB disease. Since people with latent TB infection cannot spread TB to others, nothing further will need to be done in the workplace. However, if the employee has TB disease, the TB control program may start a contact investigation. The investigation will help them find out how the employee may have been exposed to TB and to determine who else might be at risk.

During the investigation, the health department will ask the employee about his or her job, such as the work hours, working conditions, and people who work closely with him or her. The TB control program may set up an appointment to talk with you and to tour your workplace. They may also want to talk to people who regularly visit your workplace. Throughout the investigation, they will work with you to make sure that the employee’s identity is kept confidential.

Additional Information

CDC. Questions and Answers About TB.

CDC. Tuberculosis: General Information.

CDC. The Difference Between Latent TB Infection and Active TB Disease.

CDC. Interferon-Gamma Release Assays (IGRAs) – Blood Test for TB Infection.

CDC. Tuberculin Skin Testing.

CDC. Protect Your Family and Friends from TB: The TB Contact Investigation. (PDF)

CDC. TB Control Programs

Fact Sheets | General | Tuberculosis Information for Employers in Non-Healthcare Settings | TB (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between TB and PTB? ›

Pulmonary TB (PTB) refers to any bacteriologically confirmed or clinically diagnosed case of TB involving the lung parenchyma or the tracheobronchial tree. Miliary TB is classified as PTB because there are lesions in the lungs.

How to deal with TB in the workplace? ›

Adequate sick leave should be available to employees to allow them sufficient time to recover, especially those with drug-resistant TB as they may require hospitalization for a few months. Once the patient returns to work, s/he must be allowed time off work to visit the clinic for follow-up visits.

What to do if an employee is diagnosed with tuberculosis? ›

Employees who are tested positive for TB will be placed on at least 2 weeks of hospitalisation leave. They are generally deemed to be non-infectious after completing the first two weeks of treatment and you do not need be segregate them from other employees when they return to work.

What is TB education? ›

The goals of the Basic TB Validation Course are to provide the: Basic history, epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment and control of TB infection and disease; Training to administer, read and record Mantoux tuberculin skin tests (TSTs); and.

Is PTB airborne or droplet? ›

Why are tuberculosis (TB) precautions important? Mycobacterium tuberculosis is transmitted in airborne particles called droplet nuclei that are expelled when persons with pulmonary or laryngeal TB cough, sneeze, shout, or sing. The tiny bacteria can be carried by air currents throughout a room or building.

What are the three types of tuberculosis? ›

Tuberculosis Types
  • Primary TB. This is the first stage of a tuberculosis infection. ...
  • Latent TB. You have the germs in your body, but your immune system keeps them from spreading. ...
  • Active TB. The germs multiply and make you sick. ...
  • Active TB outside the lungs.
Jul 27, 2023

Is a person with TB allowed to work? ›

HCP who are likely * infected with TB based on a positive TST or IGRA result and individual risk, should be referred for a CXR and medical evaluation to rule out active TB prior to returning to work. If a diagnosis of TB infection is made, HCP may return to work, as TB infection is not contagious.

Does OSHA have regulations dealing with tuberculosis in the workplace? ›

Response: OSHA has no specific standard for tuberculosis (TB). OSHA protects workers from TB by enforcing the provisions set by Section 5(a)(l) of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act, the general duty clause.

Why do employers screen for TB? ›

current CDC recommendations. Pre-employment and post-exposure TB testing of staff is crucial to help stop the spread of TB and keep employees and communities safe. The CDC recommends TB screening and testing of all US healthcare personnel upon hire as part of a TB Infection Control Plan.

Does TB need to be reported? ›

Patients should be reported whenever TB is suspected, even if bacteriologic evidence of disease is lacking or treatment has not been initiated. If TB treatment is initiated after submitting the initial disease report, the provider is required to submit a corrected report.

What should you do right away if you are exposed to tuberculosis TB in your workplace? ›

Workers should monitor their health for symptoms of TB infection for 10 days following known exposure and call their state or local health department immediately if they develop any illness signs or symptoms.

Does tuberculosis stay in your system forever? ›

Many people who have latent TB infection never develop TB disease. In these people, the TB bacteria remain inactive for a lifetime without causing disease. But in other people, especially people who have a weak immune system, the bacteria become active, multiply, and cause TB disease.

What is the TB Awareness Program? ›

Through this programme, more than 100 commuters were benefitted and aware about TB including Auto Drivers, Street Vendors, school-going students, Office Staff, etc. The programme provided a great opportunity to demystify the public myths and misconceptions about TB.

What are the three stages of TB? ›

Key points about TB

There are 3 stages of TB—exposure, latent, and active disease. A TB skin test or a TB blood test can diagnose the disease. Treatment exactly as recommended is necessary to cure the disease and prevent its spread to other people.

What is TB called now? ›

Tuberculosis is also known as TB. Not everyone who becomes infected with TB gets sick, but if you do get sick you need to be treated. If you're infected with the bacterium, but don't have symptoms, you have inactive tuberculosis or latent tuberculosis infection (also called latent TB).

What is PTB in TB? ›

Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This microorganism not only infects the lung but also other organs such as brain, kidneys and lymph nodes. Today, tuberculosis constitutes global public health problem with a greater impact in less industrialized countries.

Is PTB very contagious? ›

TB is contagious. This means the bacteria may spread from an infected person to someone else. You can get TB by breathing in air droplets from a cough or sneeze of an infected person. The resulting lung infection is called primary TB.

How serious is PTB? ›

Pulmonary TB is curable with treatment, but if left untreated or not fully treated, the disease often causes life-threatening concerns. Untreated pulmonary TB disease can lead to long-term damage to these parts of the body: lungs. brain.

How do you know if you have PTB? ›

Symptoms of TB

Only some of the following symptoms of active pulmonary TB may occur during the primary infection (and they may be relatively mild in an otherwise healthy person) or a secondary reactivation of MTB infection: Chest pain. Wheezing or difficulty breathing. Cough (usually with mucus, sometimes with blood)

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