Slightly more than a hundred years ago, tuberculosis was considered a disease that could not be cured. In those days, one epidemic of this disease could take millions of lives with it, and this depended not only on how strong its pathogen was, but also on the conditions in which people lived. In our time, advances in science have made it possible to create not only effective methods of treatment, but also the prevention of this disease. Man began to conquer the disease since, at the end of the nineteenth century, Robert Koch discovered a bacterium - the causative agent of tuberculosis, which was named after the great scientist - Koch's wand.
Koch's wand causes many terrible diseases that can easily kill a person. The most common are pulmonary tuberculosis and tuberculosis of the lymph nodes. They develop primarily in those people who live in conditions that force their immunity to constantly resist one or another pathogenic microorganism. Those who usually sufferpeople who lack vitamins are malnourished. Sometimes TB can start after an infection, such as pneumonia, if not properly treated.
It is noteworthy that even today there is a considerable risk of contracting tuberculosis. This is due to the fact that Koch's wand is extremely resistant to many factors that easily kill other microorganisms. The only thing that copes with this bacterium is exposure to high temperature, direct sunlight and substances containing chlorine. Such survivability of bacteria is due to its special structure. It is characterized by the presence of a special cellular structure - a capsule that protects the bacterium from most external influences.
Usually, the causative agent of tuberculosis is transmitted through the saliva or sputum of the patient, which enters the surrounding area when coughing or sneezing. It is worth remembering that according to statistics, the incidence of various kinds of tuberculosis is about five percent. Therefore, it is not surprising that tuberculosis can be contracted in almost any public place. In addition, in the body of each person there is a certain number of Koch's sticks, which, however, cannot develop due to the action of immunity. As soon as they get into favorable conditions for themselves, the risk of their development will increase sharply.
An important role in the fight against tuberculosis in our time is played by various preventive measures. This includes fluorography, which shows changes in lung tissue caused by infection, and a test fortuberculosis, which shows the presence of infectious agents in human body fluids, or the Mantoux reaction, which, however, only works properly in children.
Thus, despite the fact that Koch's wand is a formidable microorganism that can destroy huge numbers of people, you can resist it simply by observing a number of rules: proper nutrition, a he althy lifestyle, minimal contact with tuberculosis patients and regular testing for infection.
