Tuberculosis (TB) is an infection caused by bacteria (a type of germ). Not everyone infected with TB looks sick, so health care providers use skin tests and blood tests to find out if a person has it. A "positive" TB test usually means a child has TB. But the test can be "positive" for other reasons. Extra tests can help your health care provider find out if your child has TB.

Bring your child to all follow-up medical visits. This will help your health care provider figure out the best way to keep your child healthy.

• You have questions about TB or the TB test results.
• Your child gets symptoms of TB infection, such as:
  • fever
  • cough
  • tiredness
  • weight loss
  • chills
  • night sweats

Your child:

• coughs up blood
• has chest pain

What are the signs of TB? Some kids with TB seem healthy. But later they can become sick. TB can affect the lungs, brain, lymph nodes, bones, skin, and joints. A child with TB may have a cough, chills, fever, stomach or joint pain, or weight loss. 

What does a "false positive" TB skin test result mean? A false positive test result means a child has a positive TB skin test, but does not actually have TB.

False positives can happen when:

• A child had a TB vaccine in the past, like the BCG vaccine. This vaccine isn't widely used in the U.S., but often it's given in other countries.
• A child has a different infection. This may need treatment or might be mild and get better on its own.

How will the health care provider find out if my child has TB? When the skin test is "positive," the health care provider will do more tests to confirm the diagnosis of TB. These can include a blood test and an X-ray of the lungs. The health care provider also may look for TB bacteria in your child's sputum (mucus coughed up from the lungs), stomach contents, or urine (pee).

What happens if my child has TB? Children with TB need to take antibiotics for a long time to kill the TB bacteria. If your child has TB, all family members should get tested. Anyone with TB needs treatment.