Kerala has introduced a new intradermal test called Cy-TB for detecting and treating tuberculosis (TB) infection.
TB infection is different from active TB disease.
A person with TB infection harbours the organism causing TB infection (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) in the body.
But the organism remains dormant or inactive in the body and the person neither has any TB symptoms nor is he/she contagious.
However, if left untreated, 5-10% of these people will progress to developing active TB disease when the body’s immune system weakens, allowing the TB bacteria to flare up.