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Dwight A. Powell, MD

Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2008;162(5):489-490.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most common infections in the world. It is estimated that one-third of the world's population is currently infected with TB.¹ The majority of those infected have latent tuberculosis (LTBI). Following infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), the organism replicates, most commonly in the lung as the portal of entry, then spreads through lymphatics to the blood stream where virtually any organ in the body can become infected. By the time this has occurred (2-3 months after infection) the host immune response develops in 95% of otherwise healthy persons and sets up granulomas that wall off the MTB organisms wherever they have settled. Many of these organisms remain viable in a dormant or latent state with the potential to reactivate at a later date when the immune system may weaken. The percentage of otherwise healthy persons who eventually reactivate varies from 5% . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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