How Was The Treatment Of Tuberculosis Discovered?

Tuberculosis is known to exist even before the yearconsumption people at the idea of Hermann Brehmer
2000BC, and writings from Egypt and Babylonwho was ill of consumption too but cured himself by
mention it. Even the in the Greek literature there cantraveling in the Himalayan Mountains for a while.
be found information about phthisis and local doctorsThese sanatoriums cured people by exposing them
considered this disease to be very dangerous forto long sun and fresh air baths and a proper diet.
citizens.In 1865 a French doctor proved that the disease was
In the seventh century doctors began to study morecaused by a specific microorganism which transmits
about tuberculosis and exact facts about this diseasefrom human to human and from human to animals.
began to appear in books. In 1679 Sylvius wroteIn 1882 the mystery of the microorganism was
about the tubercles that appear in the patient's lungssolved by Robert Koch who invented a staining
and about how they transform into abscesses andmethod for these bacteria. So the sanatoriums
cavities. In 1702 Manget brought information aboutimproved their social and sanitary conditions and kept
the military tuberculosis, describing its pathologicalthe patients isolated from the healthy persons until
features. In 1699 in Italy the authorities decided thatthey would have gotten better. An Italian doctor
the objects that wound have remained after asuggested the artificial pneumothorax to reduce the
person's death of tuberculosis were to be disinfectedvolume of the lungs and that was the beginning of
in order to keep the other citizens safe.the therapy era for tuberculosis.
Benjamin Marten was the first to say in 1720 thatIn 1895 Wilhelm Konrad von Rontgen discovered the
the consumption was caused by "wonderfully minuteradiation and so the science men gained another
living creatures" which attack the lungs. He alsobattle against tuberculosis as they could monitory
stated that these creatures would have transmittedclosely the progress or regression of the disease.
to any other healthy person who would have stayedThe most important discovery was made by the
to close to an infected person like sleeping with it orFrench Calmette and Guerin who instituted the basis
eating and drinking from the same plate and cup.for the vaccine against tuberculosis by using a low
Scientists seem to have discovered many thingsvirulence Tb bacteria vaccine. The last step needed in
about the transmission of the disease but that wasthe therapy of tuberculosis was made in the middle
good only for prevention but not for the cure of theof the Second World War when chemotherapy was
disease as there was no treatment available.invented.
Only later sanatorium centers were invented for