TB is treated with antibiotics
TB treatment is always done with a combination of several different drugs. TB treatment lasts for at least six months. It can last longer if the TB disease is severe. The risk of transmission usually decreases rapidly once treatment starts.
It is important to follow given instructions carefully in order to be cured. Medication should be taken regularly. If a person with TB disease stops taking medications too early, they can become ill again. If all medications are not taken correctly, the TB bacteria can become resistant to those drugs. As a result the disease will be more difficult to treat.
If the patient has drug-resistant TB, treatment begins with a combination of at least five or six drugs. Treatment of drug-resistant TB usually lasts for two years.
If a person is infectious, they are treated in a special airborne infection isolation room in the hospital. Isolation prevents the spread of TB to other patients and staff in the hospital. For this reason the patient is alone in the room and movement in the facility is restricted. Read more about isolation here.