Question: How many types of tuberculosis is there, are any types life-threatening?

Ashley Otter answered on 15 Nov 2017:

That’s a great question. Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease often comprised of a cough/respiratory problems and nodule growth within the lungs. But lots of different bacteria can cause the disease TB, but the main bacterium that causes tuberculosis is ‘Mycobacterium tuberculosis’, discovered by Robert Koch in 1882. But a lot of other Mycobacterium bacteria cause TB, like ‘Mycobacterium bovis’; the cause of bovine TB and ‘Mycobacterium pinnipedii, the cause of TB in seals.

In regards to life threatening, Mycobacterium tuberculosis is life-threatening, but only in those with active TB infections and no treatment (like antibiotics), as a 1/3 of the worlds population have the bacterium in their lung but our bodies keep them under control. But when TB ‘reactivates’, like when we are stressed or immunosuppressed (like HIV) it can really make us sick and could lead to death. Unfortunately, TB is the biggest killer worldwide due to infectious disease, more deadly than malaria or HIV, with 1.7 million people dying in 2016 due to TB.