Number and duration of follow-up visits for tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is a national statutory infectious disease, and the treatment course is long, requiring several follow-up visits in the middle. The main follow-up visit occurs 1 week after treatment and requires liver and kidney function, blood routine and chest imaging to see if there is damage to blood routine and liver and kidney function after anti-tuberculosis treatment, especially liver function abnormalities that require high attention. If the transaminases are 2-3 times higher than normal, it is necessary to stop the anti-tuberculosis drugs and use liver-protective therapy. The follow-up time is 1 month after taking TB drugs, when a chest CT examination can be given to assess whether there is significant improvement in pulmonary imaging changes, and liver and kidney function and routine blood tests are also part of the routine examination. If no abnormal liver and kidney function damage occurs in 1 month, and the chest imaging is obviously improved and absorbed, the next review is scheduled for 2 months. 2 months is the end of the intensive period of TB drug treatment, and systematic review is given at this time, which is good guidance for the consolidation period of 4 months. If there is a significant improvement in all indicators, including clinical manifestations, at the end of the intensive period, it will be smoother to adjust the drugs during the consolidation period. At the end of six months, the patient’s clinical manifestations, biochemical examinations and chest CT examinations will be evaluated again, and if they are all normal, the course of treatment will be over. If some lesions are still not absorbed or even aggravated, one needs to consider whether it is drug-resistant TB and needs to reformulate the anti-TB treatment regimen. Therefore, there are several follow-up visits for tuberculosis, ranging from 7 days, 1 month, 2 months, 6 months, or even longer.