Human tuberculosis

• The disease in humans caused by bovine TB (bTB) and human TB bacteria are identical with respect to clinical symptoms and lesions and would require complex tests to distinguish them.

• The importance of human TB bacterium as a reverse zoonosis (causing infection in animals) is also gaining prominence with reports humans and bovines respectively having mixed infections with both bTB and human TB organisms.
• There may be no symptoms till the disease is quite advanced. The common symptoms are cough, loss of weight, poor appetite etc.
• Humans get the infection by drinking contaminated milk from infected animals or by close contact with infected animals.