Tuberculosis

Infectious Disease · ~7% of blueprint

Pathophysiology: Mycobacterium tuberculosis (acid-fast) inhaled → granulomatous lung infection; can reactivate.
Signs & Symptoms: Chronic cough, hemoptysis, night sweats, weight loss, fever; classically upper-lobe disease.
Gold Standard Diagnosis: Sputum acid-fast smear & culture (gold standard) + NAAT; CXR; IGRA/PPD for latent TB.
First-line Treatment: RIPE — Rifampin, Isoniazid, Pyrazinamide, Ethambutol (2 mo), then RI (4 mo). Latent: INH or rifampin.

High-Yield Pearl

Isoniazid causes peripheral neuropathy — give pyridoxine (B6) to prevent it.

More Infectious Disease conditions