2. What is Tuberculosis?
Transmission
Diagnosis
TB in Pakistan
Relationship of TB with dentistry
Decision tree for dental management of TB
patients
Safety measures by dentists
3. Infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium
Tuberculosis, which primarily affects the
lungs but is also capable of involving almost
any site in the body including the oral cavity.
4. Aerosolized droplets 5µm in diameter.
Estimated 5-200 orgs required for infection
Spreads through the air when a person:
• Sneezes
• Coughs
• Speaks
• Talks
5. Chest x-rays Air appears black in
lungs (radiograph)
Tuberculin skin test (TST or PPD)
6. TB has been prevalent in Pakistan and
unfortunately it has been one of the neglected
health areas in the past.
Pakistan ranks 6th amongst the countries with a
highest burden of TB in the world.
Pakistan contributes about 44% of tuberculosis
burden in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
According to WHO, the incidence of sputum
positive TB cases in Pakistan is 80/100,000 per
year and for all types it is 177/100,000.
TB is responsible for 5.1 percent of the total
national disease burden in Pakistan.
The impact of TB on socio economic status is
substantial.
7. In dentistry, the incidence of exposure
to an active TB patient is quite low.
Oral lesions of TB are uncommon, with
most cases appearing as a chronic
painless ulcer.
This does not mean that the dental
health care worker should not concern
themselves with good diagnostic and
preventive measures and realization
that patients and other HCWs may be
infected with TB.
8.
9. Patient Education
Should educate the patient regarding his/her severe
health condition and needs to make sure that the
patient should cover his/her mouth and nose while
coughing or sneezing.
Barriers
Dentist and dental nurse should wear gloves, eye
glasses and mask to prevent the possibility of
microorganism from being transferred during dental
procedures
10. Sterilization
Proper sterilization of all the instruments should
be done before and after the treatment of that
patient. The dentist should also disinfect his/her
hand after treatment.
