Conditions
Tuberculosis
Also Known As Consumption; TB; Phthisis
Bacterial Disease
Citation Formats
General Reference
APA Style
BibTeX
A chronic infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, most often affecting the lungs, historically called consumption for the wasting it produced. It was among the leading causes of death in nineteenth-century Europe and, per the World Health Organization, remains one of the world's leading infectious killers. Robert Koch identified the causative bacillus in 1882, a discovery that helped establish germ theory; effective antibiotic treatment did not arrive until streptomycin's introduction in the 1940s.
Facts
Condition Classinfectious, bacterial, chronic 1 Causative AgentMycobacterium tuberculosis 1 First DescribedMarks Robert Koch's identification of the tuberculosis bacillus, not the first recognition of the disease itself, which is far older. First Described (Era)Skeletal evidence of tuberculosis has been found in human remains thousands of years old, and the Greek physician Hippocrates described the disease, under the name phthisis, circa 400 BCE. 2 PrevalenceAn estimated 10.6 million people fell ill with tuberculosis in 2022, and it remained one of the world's leading infectious causes of death, according to World Health Organization data. 3 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
Koch's 1882 identification of the tuberculosis bacillus is part of the same evidentiary program, Koch's postulates, that established germ theory.
X-rays, Discoveries Chest radiography became central to tuberculosis diagnosis and to twentieth-century mass screening campaigns.
Treated By
Effective treatment requires a multi-drug antibiotic regimen (streptomycin from the 1940s, later isoniazid and rifampin) sustained for months; a single antibiotic alone permits resistant strains to emerge.
Sources
Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.
View At A Past Year
The atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.