Frequently Asked Questions

What is TB?
Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease spread through the air by a person with TB. Small droplets of infected sputum are coughed into the air and breathed in by other people.

What are the signs and symptoms of TB?

BREATHLESSNESS	CHEST PAINS	LOSS OF APPETITE	COUGHING UP BLOOD
PERSISTANT TIREDNESS	PERSISTANT COUGH	UNEXPLAINED WEIGHT LOSS	NIGHT SWEATS

What do I do if I think I or someone I know is showing these symptoms?
You and/or the person you know should get tested at your nearest clinic. You will be asked to give a sputum sample to determine if you have TB and may be sent for a chest x-ray. If the results of these tests are positive you will be given medication to take and asked to attend the clinic on a regular basis until you are well.

How can I protect myself from TB?

• Maintain a healthy lifestyle (e.g. don’t smoke or drink excessively, eat healthy foods, avoid overcrowded areas like shabeens)
• Protect yourself from exposure to aerosols (droplets from sneezes and coughs) of a TB patient if you will be in contact one
• Visit a clinic to be tested if you suspect that you may have TB

What is HIV?
HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. This virus causes AIDS (acquired immune-deficiency syndrome). HIV is different from most other viruses because it attacks the immune system. HIV finds and destroys a type of white blood cell (T cells or CD4 cells) that the immune system must have to fight disease.

How can I protect myself from HIV?

• Abstain from sex
• Be faithful
• Condomise
• Get tested for HIV
• Protect yourself when in contact with blood

Why is it important to adhere to TB treatment?
It is very important that one adheres to the medication until the treatment is complete. After the first few doses medicine people may feel well, this is because most of the TB bacteria are killed by the medicine. However, it is important that you continue to take the remaining medicine so that the rest of the TB bacteria are killed. If you stop taking the medication after the first month or so you will still have a TB infection even if you feel well. These bacteria will replicate and soon you will feel ill again. Also if you stop taking the medication early those bacteria that were left behind may become drug resistant. This means that when you start taking medication against it the next time you get ill the medication may not be strong enough to completely clear the bacteria.

How is stigma and discrimination associated with these diseases?
People often develop negative attitudes associated with diseases such as HIV and TB. These attitudes or ideas are considered stigmas which are associated with the diseases. These stigmas usually arise due to a fear of acquiring the disease and may result in discrimination against people living with the diseases. For example some people believe that one can contract HIV by hugging an HIV patient. As a result people may be avoided or discriminated against. In turn people are less likely to want to get tested in fear of knowing their status and having such stigmas attached to them. This is a problem because when people avoid the problem it continues spreading.