Tuberculin test is a diagnostic method for determining a person's sensitivity to tuberculosis bacteria. The test allows you to determine whether tuberculosis infection is present in the body. The most common testing option is the Mantoux test.
What is called the turn of the tuberculin test
Many parents, hearing the diagnosis of "tuberculosis test turn" for the first time, ask what it is. Tuberculin test turn is the first positive result of the test, provided that before that the results were negative. The cause of the turn may be either vaccination against tuberculosis, or infection with the disease. In any case, when you hear this term, you should not panic: for the final confirmation of the diagnosis, the child needs to undergo several additional tests. And only after a complete examination, the doctor will be able to make a final diagnosis.
Mantu
The Mantoux reaction is called the body's response to tuberculin. In the area of injectionthe drug appears characteristic inflammation caused by blood cells responsible for immunity. If the tuberculosis bacterium is present in the human body, then the reaction of the body to the injection will be more intense and the test will show a positive result. By measuring the so-called papule with a ruler (in simple terms, Mantoux's "button"), the degree of reaction of a person's immunity to the tuberculosis bacterium is determined. The Mantoux test is prohibited in the presence of skin or infectious diseases, as well as in patients suffering from exacerbation of allergies.
Reaction to test in children
In most cases, the reaction of the child to the injection is negative. In the remaining 30% of children, the test gives a questionable or positive result.
A child's body is exposed to TB bacteria at an early age. A distinctive feature of Koch's wand is the rate of penetration into the human body. With weak immunity, the infection will quickly enter the body and linger in it for life. The causative agent of tuberculosis may not manifest itself until the onset of favorable conditions for spread. The process of contact of tuberculosis bacteria with the child's body is very difficult. Children under the age of 3 are at high risk. At this age, in 90% of cases, infection in the body leads to the onset of the disease.
All TB vaccinated children undergo a tuberculin test every year.
Positive test result
Tuberculin test turn in children is a dynamic change from negative to positive over time. The process consists of the following steps:
- Dubious or negative result was diagnosed as a result of the initial test.
- Secondary examination showed an increase in inflammation up to 15 mm.
- Follow-up check showed a 5 mm increase in the papule compared to the second stage.
The diagnosis of "tuberculin test bend" in children does not yet mean that the child has tuberculosis. An increase in the papule can sometimes be the result of an allergic reaction of the body to the injection. But, as a rule, the turn indicates the presence of disease bacteria in the child's body. To make a final diagnosis, the doctor prescribes an additional examination to the patient.
Opinion of Dr. Komarovsky
It is interesting to know the opinion of the famous pediatrician Evgeny Olegovich Komarovsky about the turn of the tuberculin test in children. The doctor says that a positive Mantoux test indicates the presence of a tubercle bacillus in the child's body. The process of papule enlargement indicates the development of immunity. Further, Komarovsky advises to conduct an additional examination of the child: undergo a thorough examination, take a blood test, and do an x-ray. If these measures confirmed the preliminary diagnosis, it is necessary to start treating tuberculosis. If suspicions are not confirmed, the child is considered he althy and additionalhe does not require diagnostic and treatment measures.
Sometimes the attending physician has doubts about the diagnosis. This often happens when an X-ray image cannot be interpreted unambiguously. In this case, Evgeny Olegovich advises to conduct a prophylactic course of treatment with Isoniazid. A tuberculin test bend has a chance of developing into true tuberculosis over time. It may take 5, and sometimes even 10 years, and the rudiments of the disease, untreated at the time, will turn into a real terrible disease.
The probability of such a process is 0.5%, but nevertheless, in most cases, doctors play it safe and prescribe antibiotics to children. In this situation, Dr. Komarovsky advises parents not to trust doctors, who are often incompetent, and to make their own decisions.
Using Isoniazid
Tuberculosis treatment is a lengthy process, especially since after its completion the patient needs an additional course of rehabilitation. Therefore, the prevention of tuberculosis is a priority than the process of its treatment. Treatment of the tuberculin test in children with Isoniazid is an important component of anti-tuberculosis measures. Studies show that the use of Isoniazid can reduce by 90% the likelihood of developing tuberculosis in people who were previously infected.
The drug has an effect on the tuberculosis bacteria that are at the stage of reproduction, and also destroys the microorganisms of the disease in the resting phase. The high effectiveness of the drug is noted not only in the treatment of tuberculosis, but also in the prevention. It is important to understand that the use of "Isoniazid" should be carried out only in situations where the diagnosis has shown clear risk factors for the development of this disease. The drug is indicated only for patients whose diagnosis allows infection with tuberculosis bacteria or suggests the likelihood of developing active forms of the disease.
"Isoniazid" is prescribed to children who have been in contact with carriers of the disease. 3 months after the course of treatment, the Mantoux test is shown to the child. The course of prophylactic administration of the drug for children is 2 months. Isoniazid is taken in amounts up to 10 mg per kilogram of the patient's body weight per day.
Child risk of infection
Multiple studies conducted by epidemiologists show that in the classic course of tuberculosis, children very rarely infect other children or adults. A child's cough contains little or no sputum, and a child's weak cough shock is unable to disperse bacteria particles into the air. At the same time, adolescents with extensive foci of the disease are capable of transmitting the disease. When pulmonary tuberculosis is detected in a child, many doctors recommend isolating the young patient. However, it has been proven that such a measure is unnecessary: the tuberculin test turn in children is very rarely transmitted.
