Has anyone ever tested positive from a TB skin test? I did today and

[Rowdyboy]

am a little freaked. I was told that I have to take 3 pills, twice a week for a year, after which I'll be immune to tuberculosis. In the meantime, I'm not contagious and life can continue as normal.

If its happened to you or anyone you know, please, reassure me (trust me, I NEED reassurance!). Give me some DU love, support, affection or just tell me to get over myself. After all, I have no real problem. If I eat the pills, I'll be okay. Many people don't have that option. I tend to over-react because I have a bit of the drama queen in me. Just be my friends-thats what you guys do best.

My partner knows, but no one else. Tonight, I'm telling my friends on DU, because I need to talk to someone and you guys are easy because I've never actually met you!.

[6000eliot]

1. I've never tested positive,

but my (limited) understanding is that the test only shows that you were exposed to TB, not that you have it. When I managed the group home, two of my clients had tested positive years ago and had no signs of TB.

[merh]

3. That's what I understand the test results to reflect

that you have been exposed to TB, not that you have it.

The treatment is more like a precaution, to make sure you don't get it.

[Rowdyboy]

8. Right, I've been exposed, but need the treatment as a precaution....

Still ruined my week.

[merh]

13. Sorry sweetie.

You and I both know, it could be worse. Think of them as huge Flinstone vitamins! :)

[file83]

19. How the heck does someone get "exposed" to TB? Animals? Other

people with TB? I have no clue...

[Niche]

41. By inhaling air that a person with TB exhales (coughs)/Plane, buses, etc.

[merh]

47. I worked in a correctional center.

I don't "get" how it happens, just know it does. You may want to google TB and see what you can find.

:hi:

[Rowdyboy]

16. I think thats my situation too....Thanks

[merh]

2. My skin reacted, but they decided it wasn't a positive.

My co-worker tested positive and she is okay after taking the pills. I don't know what they are like now, but then you couldn't drink while taking them because the pills themselves are hard on your liver. It will be okay, Rowdyboy. It will just be a pain in the ass with the alcohol if you enjoy alcohol, being told you can't makes you want it more. x(

I promise, it will be okay, you will do fine. :hug: :hug:

:pals: :hug: :loveya:

[Rowdyboy]

9. Gonna be tough....I drink wine or beer most every night.....

Have for 35 years. May be nasty.

[merh]

12. Check with the doc, that was 10 years ago and they may

have improved the meds and they may allow you a glass a night or sumthing.

The sacrafice is worth it, having the symptoms of TB and struggling with it is no fun atall!

:thumbsup:

[Rowdyboy]

38. Its not gonna be fun....It may be time for me to grow up, but I really ...

hope not. I've really enjoyed being Peter Pan for the last 52 years. I don't want to grow up.

[merh]

48. you can grow up and keep the child alive sweetie

I'm trying to find my child again, she has disappeared on me. I think the trailer was too cramped for the both of us and the dogs. :(

It will be alright, just an adjustment for a time, you'll see. :hug:

[Rowdyboy]

50. I expect living in a FEMA trailer for a year would make anyone's

"inner child" run away. I'll be better today. I'm always a little shaky when separated from my guy but I'm leaving in a few hours and we'll be together again tonight. He is my rock, but you and the rest of DU have done an admirable job in his absence. Thank you more than you know. :hug:

Steve

[merh]

53. have a great reunion

hug your man for me and have him hug you back from me. :hug:

I'm glad I was able to help, every now and then, I get things right (not very often lately)

Michele

[spuddonna]

4. Bummer!

My sister was exposed to TB in the hospital, and had to take a round of some medication. It wasn't as long as a year though - what a pain! :) Just make sure to follow the doc's instructions and you'll be okay! :hug:

[Rowdyboy]

10. Thanks...I love DU....You guys are excellent support

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

5. Something to consider is the fact that even after a successful course

of treatment, it's possible for some TB organisms to be "latent" for many years and become "active" after you get older, the immune system declines, etc. In other words, after treatment, the TB organisms are encapsulated, but still in your body (in other words, you will probably be fine after a course of treatment, but should not necessarily regard it as impossible that you will ever have "reactivated" TB again--if an internist or infectious disease doc tells you otherwise then I will stand corrected):

http://www.webmd.com/hw/infection/hw207373.asp

Here's some other WebMD info about the significance of the skin test:

http://www.webmd.com/hw/lab_tests/hw203560.asp

[Rowdyboy]

14. Thanks for the sites....I'll bookmark and check them out when I'm more

back to normal. Being exposed to tb and having to take a few pills a day for a year is a pretty weak excuse to whine.

Again, thanks for the links.

[bread_and_roses]

6. I did about 40 years ago

Does that help? I do not and never have had had TB. I was exposed (I never knew how or by whom), thus the Positive. In those days, one did not have to take prophylactic medication due to a Positive test. That is now done because of the new drug-resistant forms of TB.

Unless the new medications impact this, once you test positive you will always test positive.

[Rowdyboy]

18. Interesting....I look forward to talking to my nurse practicioner.....

Thanks

[dg10348]

7. Positive since 1976

I took Isoniazid for 1 year and get chest x-rays every 2-3 years.So far so good.Be sure and keep your records as one time...after 20 years or so a new job wanted me to PROVE I had tested positive and had been treated.I had to rip my garage apart to find all the old papers.For a few tense days they were insisting they would have to do another PPD or I couldn't have the job.My positive reaction was quite large and I have no interest in repeating the event.Good luck.

[Rowdyboy]

20. Thats what I need to hear....Thanks so much my friend....

Its the kind of personal imput that really reassures me, and I need that right now.

[PDJane]

11. Yep.

Positive since 1967. Not a real surprise, since I was at the time working at a sanitarium for tuberculosis patients.

Have never had TB, however, just the positive test......and I have been tested many, many times since, with bouts of chest x-rays every year.

You will be fine......

[Rowdyboy]

21. Bless you. I need reassurance tonight and you came through....

[SoCalDemGrrl]

15. I think I'd insist on another test b4 starting meds.. My son

had a positive test many years ago and I insisted that
they repeat it and it was negative. He's been quite
healthy since.

[Rowdyboy]

22. I asked about "false positives" and was assured it wasn't a problem, but

they do plan to test me again.

[file83]

17. Just take your pills religiously - and take care of yourself!

Eat lots of good health food (no junk!) and juices (but not too much sugar - vegi juice is best!).

Take care - you are not alone - you never are. Please keep us updated and let us know how your healing goes!

[Rowdyboy]

24. Thanks, friend, I'm on target dietwise....Last January, my partner and I

cleaned up our diets, cut down on fats, carbs and fried foods, and started a serious exercise program. We've lost 65 lbs between us and I'm in the best shape of my life. The timing couldn't have been better.

Trust me, I'll keep DU informed. I can actually speak freely with you guys and you will never know what that means.

[file83]

30. That's good to hear about how you turned things around!

:toast: to you!

[tocqueville]

23. aren't everybody vaccinated against TB in the US ?

obviously not, but probably a big mistake

The vaccine proved to be the safest and the most widely used vaccine. The vaccine is very efficacious against tuberculous meningitis in the pediatric age group, but its efficacy against pulmonary tuberculosis appears to be variable. As of 2006, a few countries do not use BCG for routine vaccination, and the USA and the Netherlands have never used it routinely. In the United States, BCG vaccination is not routinely given to adults because it is felt that having a reliable Mantoux test, and being able to accurately detect active disease, is more beneficial to society than vaccinating against a relatively rare (in the US) condition.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacillus_Calmette_Gu%C3%A9rin

[Rowdyboy]

25. God knows, I had every vaccination imagineable inthe 1950's....

[bigbrother05]

28. I wasn't going to post until I read in the 1950's

My husband was given an inoculation in the 50's for TB.
He always test positive.
Is there anyway you can check, you may have had the same inoculation.

[Rowdyboy]

31. I doubt the health dept records here go back that far, but itws worth

checking. What could it hurt?

[villager]

26. do you definitely have it? My sister tested "positive"on the skin

test, but she's always had sensitive skin, and further tests confirmed she doesn't have it -- which no one really thought she did...

Best of luck to you, DU support, wishes, affection, etc...!

[Rowdyboy]

All I've been told so far is exposure.....

Still have to take the pills though

[driver8]

27. I do -- I always have to get a chest x-ray.

I lived in Panama and Guam as a kid...I was told that is probably where I picked it up.

When I was in college, we had a girl in our dorm who died from TB. None of us knew she had it and all had to be tested.

[Rowdyboy]

33. Its frightening but then dying of TB is far more frightening....

I'm really very lucky in fact.

[Mira]

29. I always test positive - because as a child I was vaccinated against it.

[sandnsea]

32. How scary!!

I don't know anything about it but I do know it's scary to face life-long illnesses. If it's just little pills and no side affects, meh, it'll be as routine as morning coffee before too long. My husband and I have both recently joined the ranks of the daily medicators, it's part of aging in America these days. Just hang in there!! :hug:

[Rowdyboy]

36. I already take a lot of meds...."Better living through chemistry!"

Just a little freaked. Thanks for the hug, my friend. I needed DU tonight. Not ready to talk to my real-time friends just yet. Virtual reality is really superior in some ways.

[pansypoo53219]

34. ok, 1st, panspoo is NOT a doctor

but just as a reassurance, my grandmother's mother had T9common then) and so did grandma, her mother died by tornado tho. but grandma lived and made it to 84.

not gonna tell the whole story, but my mom worked at the big county hospital and i got access to the old wood cabinets that held all the TB test result and looked up relatives. and i also begged and begged for one canister of lung films. so i have one long real of x-rays of lungs.

[Rowdyboy]

37. You may not be a doctor, but you did make me laugh....

And that worth more than you know right now.....

[Rowdyboy]

35. You guys are the best....Anyone I don't thank tonight, I will tomorrow...

I truly love the people of DU

[bluestateguy]

39. I had a reaction once, but it was not TB

My skin just swelled up a bit. It turned out to be a false positive.

[Niche]

40. Rowdyboy - Please don't drink alcohol while on antibiotics for TB

The drugs are so dangerous (whether you drink or not) to your liver. Also, anyone past the age of 35 is in danger of liver problems. You can get TB in a grocery store, on a plane, on a bus, in the street, anywhere. There is a growing number of people who are testing positive. Please take care. For those of you who are older and risk of liver problems are higher -- stay healthy and keep your immune system up.

[Rowdyboy]

43. I was only diagnosed today but from what you say, its gonna be bad....

I'll do what I have to do to survive, and I really appreciate your warning. This morning the nurse gave me an idea of how serious it was, but your warning is even a bit more frightening. Basic point is, I want to live as long as possible.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

42. All this talk of "exposure" is misleading. It reminds me of the earlier

days of the HIV epidemic where people misunderstood people saying "your positive antibody test means you were exposed to the virus" as meaning that they were in the same room or something but had never been infected.

The skin test is a test of your immune response to TB. If you have been "exposed" enough to have mounted an immune response, the organism had entered your body and infected it. It is a marker of presumably having been infected at some point in the past. Since TB is a type of organism that your body often does not clear from your system entirely, it is generally advised to have a course of treatment in the event of a positive test, to kill as many organisms as possible and keep any remaining in an encapsulated "latent" phase, which your body generally does a good job controlling except in the event of immune system problems which occur with aging, other disease, etc.

Some infections, like hepatitis A, will cause you to forever have a positive antibody test to it, but the immune response is generally effective in eradicating the virus completely from your body, so you ARE in fact immune for the rest of your life, since the immune response is protective against subsequent infection with hep A.

Others, like hep B & C, HIV, herpes simplex, varicella (chicken pox), and TB (which is nonviral but same principle) will cause an immune response marking you as having been infected, but the immune response is NOT successful in clearing the infection entirely although it may control it for a time. In the case of HIV and the herpesviruses, it's because they can live inside immune cells and inside places like the nervous system where the immune system can't effectively reach them. In the case of TB it has to do with the fact that the organisms become encapsulated in a way that isolates them from the immune system. Still, the immune system will keep the TB in check, but the aforementioned problems can trigger a recurrence.

In the case of hep B & C it's kind of a mixed picture. In a lot of hep B cases, the body DOES in fact eradicate the infection and the immune response is subsequently protective, but in many cases chronic infection occurs causing gradually increasing liver damage, and sometimes cancers. In the case of hep C, a much larger proportion of cases result in chronic infection and liver disease, with a lower incidence of the infection being completely cleared.

To provide some reassurance though, Rowdyboy, I work in a field where occupational exposure leads to a high incidence of positive PPD's (hospital based medicine). I have a lot of friends and colleagues with positive PPDs, and as far as I can see they're pretty much all doing fine after treatment. There's no guarantee that will always be the case, but I think you should do alright with a course of the appropriate treatment. But please don't get all your info here, ask your doctor the important questions like "does this mean I've been infected" and "what are the chances of recurrence in the future, what should I look out for" and go with the info and advice of those actually taking care of you.

On Edit: Also remember that any test including PPD has an incidence of "false positive" (positive test but no actual TB infection) and "false negative" (negative test even though TB infection is present), but that those chances are generally pretty small.

[Rowdyboy]

44. Again, my friends from DU come through for me....

I spoke at length to my doctor and I'm pretty sure its serious and not a false positive. But I'm in great shape, and I'm not worried.

Your reasoned reassurance meant more to me than you will ever know. Thanks for taking time out to make me more comfortable-I needed it tonight. You guys are great

[Stockholm]

45. I sure you will be fine

Just do what the doctor tells you!

:hug:

[fed-up]

46. My brother came back from Gulf War I with TB and after meds is doing fine

now. That was 15 years ago. His TB exposure is minor compared to the depleted uranium, multiple vaccines, mustard/sarrin gas (was in Kamisshira (sp?), Iraq when that old weapons stockpile was destroyed) and oil well fires that contained numerous toxic substances.

He had signed up to get free college tuition when war was declared.

Upon his return he was loaded down with at least a dozen medications (after fighting the VA for coverage).

He is doing almost fine now and has two beautiful daughters.

Do make sure to complete your ENTIRE course of medication. I do know that he told me that if a patient is non-compliant in taking their medication that they can be jailed and forced to take it.

{{{Hugs}}}

[lapislzi]

49. My daughter, when she was 2

She was born in Africa where they routinely give BCG (TB vaccine) at birth. That can cause a positive PPD, but TB is endemic in Africa and the pediatrician advised that she would be better off taking the INH for 9 months--not taking any chances. I also freaked at the time, but I feel now I made the right decision to administer prophylaxis.

Regrettably, your PPD will always come up positive, but it should never be a cause for concern after the treatment.

Please don't panic. It's a precaution; nothing more. PM me if you want more info.

[onecent]

51. My father had TB and was in a TB hospital back in the late

1950's. My twin brother has tested positive for TB ever since that time. When they found out his father had TB, they just told him he would always test positive.

I would get another doctor's opinion. I'm not a believer in taking pills unless you HAVE to. (I don't trust the drug industry ANY MORE than I do our current administration.)

[Matariki]

52. I WOULD GET A SECOND TEST

from another Dr. before taking pills for a year.

Good luck to you.