8 main symptoms of tuberculosis (with online test)

The most common symptoms of tuberculosis are a persistent dry cough or cough with phlegm that may contain blood, chest pain when breathing or coughing, low fever, tiredness, feeling short of breath and weight loss.

Although tuberculosis mainly affects the lungs, this disease can also affect other areas of the body, such as bones, intestine or bladder, causing general and specific symptoms of the affected organ. Find out more about tuberculosis and its types.

In the presence of symptoms that may indicate tuberculosis, it is important to consult a general practitioner or pulmonologist, who will recommend appropriate treatment, preventing the transmission of the disease to other people and the emergence of complications.

Main symptoms

The main symptoms of tuberculosis are:

1. Cough for more than three weeks, which may contain blood;
2. Chest pain when breathing or coughing;
3. Low fever;
4. Night sweats;
5. Tiredness;
6. Lack of appetite;
7. Feeling of shortness of breath;
8. Weight loss without apparent cause.

Tuberculosis symptoms can be mild and last for many months and vary according to the type of organ affected, such as lungs, bones, intestine and eyes, for example.

Online symptom test

If you suspect you may have tuberculosis, check the symptoms shown in the test below:

Pulmonary tuberculosis symptoms

The main symptoms of pulmonary tuberculosis include excessive tiredness, loss of appetite, night sweats, weight loss, low fever at the end of the day and a persistent dry or phlegm cough that may contain blood.

Symptoms of extrapulmonary tuberculosis

The symptoms of extrapulmonary tuberculosis vary depending on the organ the bacteria affects:

• Nodal tuberculosis (lymph nodes): swelling of the tongues of the neck, neck, armpits and/or groin, hard tongues that do not hurt, low fever, weight loss and excessive tiredness;
• Pleural tuberculosis (pleura): dry cough, chest pain when breathing, fever, night sweats, difficulty breathing, loss of appetite, weight loss without apparent cause, general malaise;
• Osseous tuberculosis (bones): stiffness in the joints, difficulty moving the leg or hip joint and swelling at the site;
• Intestinal tuberculosis (intestine): pain in the stomach, diarrhea, presence of blood in the stool, weight loss, lack of appetite, night sweats and low-grade fever;
• Ocular tuberculosis (eyes): red eyes, blurred vision, increased sensitivity to light, eye pain and headache;
• Brain and meninges: headache, neck stiffness, convulsions and vomiting.

It is important that the type of extrapulmonary tuberculosis is properly identified, through a doctor’s evaluation and laboratory and imaging tests, so that treatment can be initiated and, thus, complications can be prevented.

Symptoms of childhood tuberculosis

Tuberculosis in children and adolescents causes the same symptoms as in adults, leading to fever, tiredness, lack of appetite, coughing for more than 3 weeks and, in some cases, enlarged lymph nodes.

How the treatment is carried out

Tuberculosis treatment is free and is generally carried out with daily use of antibiotic medications, such as Rifampicin, for at least 8 months. However, treatment can take 2 years or more if not followed correctly, or in cases of bacterial resistance.

In this way, the doctor advises the person on how long they should take the medication, warning them to take the medication every day and always at the same time. Learn more about tuberculosis treatment.