If you have a positive tb blood test or tb skin test, but your health care provider does not find evidence of tb disease after a medical evaluation, you may be diagnosed with inactive tb. An individual has symptoms of active tb disease, such as coughing, chest pain, fever, weight loss, or fatigue. The only sign that you have a tb infection is a positive tb skin test or blood test
There are two types of tb tests A negative test result for tb infection means inactive tb or active tb disease is unlikely, but a health care provider may do additional tests especially if A skin test and a blood test
Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection that most often involves the lungs, but can involve many other organs Although antibiotics can treat most cases, tb remains a significant cause of death worldwide The tb skin test, also called the purified protein derivative (ppd) test or mantoux test, shows if you've ever been infected with the bacteria that cause tuberculosis. One lab test finds out whether certain immune system cells can recognize tuberculosis
A positive test shows that you have either a latent tb infection or active tb disease Other tests of the blood sample can help determine if you have active disease A negative result means you likely do not have a tb infection. Can you have a positive tb skin test and not have tb
Two types of tests are used to detect tuberculosis in the body The tb skin test involves injecting a small amount of fluid under the skin of your forearm Swelling or bumps may indicate tb infection. Inactive (latent) tb infection happens when you have tb germs in your body, but you're not sick because the germs aren't active
You don't have symptoms and you can't spread the disease to others But the germs could start to grow (multiply) and make you sick in the future. Positive test, not active disease A positive ppd test means that your immune system has reacted to the tuberculin protein, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have active tb
