What Is Tuberculosis of the Skin?
Tuberculosis of the skin or cutaneous tuberculosis is an affliction of the skin by the same bacteria that causes TB of the lungs, mycobacterium tuberculosis. While most cases of TB are pulmonary (in the lungs), TB can invade any part of the body.
-
Characteristics
-
There are several types of cutaneous TB, but most are characterized by lesions on the skin which appear two to four weeks after the bacteria has entered through broken skin.
Testing and Diagnosis
-
Initially, the physician will likely test for TB using a Mantoux skin test and/or a blood test, followed by a chest X-ray and sputum culture (testing of mucous from the lungs). The diagnosis of cutaneous TB has to be confirmed by a skin biopsy.
-
Treatment
-
People diagnosed with TB, including TB of the skin, are treated with anti-TB drugs, which typically consist of four antibiotics -- isoniazid, rifampin, pyrazinamide and ethambutol. The patient is started on four drugs, then reduced to two if the patient responds to treatment. Recommended length of treatment is six to nine months, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Important consideration
-
Like pulmonary TB, people diagnosed with TB of the skin must take all medicine as prescribed in order to be cured. Akin to other types of bacteria, TB can become resistant to drugs when treatment is inadequate or incomplete.
Interesting fact
-
TB of the skin is rare. Even in developing countries such as India and China where TB is more common, cutaneous TB accounts for less than 0.1 percent of cases.
-
