Khalid Al-Anzai
2014
Tuberculosis (TB) is caused by members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) complex, which include: M. tuberculosis, M. bovis, M. bovis BCG, M. africanum, M. microti, M. canetti, M. pinipedii, M. caprae and M. mungi [1]. Other Tuberculosise that may infect humans include: M. leprae, M. avium, M. intracellulare and M. scrofulaceum. M. tuberculosis is an aerobic, non-spore-forming, non-motile bacillus. It belongs to the family Tuberculosisceae [2]. M. tuberculosis is pathogenic for humans while M. bovis is usually pathogenic for animals. Once infected, active disease develops in about 10% of cases, usually within 1 - 2 years after exposure. The remaining individuals enter into a state of latency which can reactivate at a later stage particularly if the individual becomes immunocompromised [3]. Active TB is predominantly pulmonary in nature and develops in 59% of cases, while extrapulmonary TB occurs in the rest. Latent TB infection has no clinical manifestations and is not contagious, but can reactivate at a later stage, particularly if the immunity of the host decreases significantly [3,4]. Immunocompromised patients and those receiving treatment with immunosuppressive agents or monoclonal antibodies should be evaluated and treated for latent TB infection at the time of diagnosis or just before starting immunosuppressive therapy [5].
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