Also, once a person with TB is on medication he or she quickly becomes non-contagious. People on medication can quickly resume their normal patterns of life without fear of spreading TB to others. These symptoms usually come on gradually over a period of weeks. To treat TB several antibiotics need to be taken together over a period of usually 6 months to a year. For this treatment to work it's vital that these medicines be taken regularly and that the treatment be completed.
Lengthy treatment is necessary because the bacteria grow very slowly and hide very well.
TB infection means someone has bacteria sleeping in their body. They're not sick or contagious because the bacteria are dormant. TB infection is detected when someone has a positive skin test but a normal chest x-ray and no other sign of tuberculosis disease. To kill these sleeping bacteria and to prevent the development of active disease, persons with TB infection are often advised to take several months of treatment, usually with only one or two medications. People with TB disease are made sick by germs that are active in their body.