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Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffIf you suspect that you have tuberculosis, contact your family doctor or your state health department. You may be referred to a doctor who specializes in infectious diseases or lung diseases (pulmonologist).
What you can do
Before your appointment, you might want to write a list answering the following questions:
- What are your symptoms, and when did they start?
- Were you vaccinated against tuberculosis as an infant?
- Have you ever had tuberculosis or a positive skin test?
- Have you ever taken medicine for TB? If so, what kind and for how long?
- Do you have other health problems?
- What medications and supplements do you regularly take?
What to expect from your doctor
Your doctor may ask some of the following questions:
- Does anyone you know have active tuberculosis?
- Do you have HIV or AIDS?
- Were you born in another country, or have you traveled in another country?
- Have you ever lived with someone who had tuberculosis?
- What kind of work do you do?
- Do you use alcohol or recreational drugs?
References
- Questions and answers about tuberculosis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/tb/publications/faqs/pdfs/qa.pdf. Accessed Oct. 16, 2012.
- Longo DL, et al. Harrison's Online. 18th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2012. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=4. Accessed Oct. 16, 2012.
- Sterling TR, et al. Three months of rifapentine and isoniazid for latent tuberculosis infection. New England Journal of Medicine. 2011;365:2155.
- Druszczynska M, et al. Latent M. tuberculosis infection - pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment and prevention strategies. Polish Journal of Microbiology. 2012;61:3.
- Coussens AK, et al. Vitamin D accelerates resolution of inflammatory responses during tuberculosis treatment. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2012;109:15449.
- Lawn SD, et al. Tuberculosis in antiretroviral treatment services in resource-limited settings: Addressing the challenges of screening and diagnosis. Journal of Infectious Diseases. 2011;204:S1159.
- Tuberculosis. World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs104/en/index.html. Accessed Oct.23, 2012.
- Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2013: 5 Books in 1. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2012. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-08373-7..00002-9&isbn=978-0-323-08373-7&about=true&uniqId=343863096-23. Accessed Oct. 16, 2012.
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