What does a positive PPD (TB Skin Test) Look like? (xray, pain)
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I had a TB test done and I had little blister like bumps all over. I had the Dr check it and he used his pen to draw a line from the right to the center? and from the left to the center. The Dr suggested that it appeared to be an allergic reaction. You couldn't see a bump and there really wasn't one. But boy does it itch. I have an allergy to metals and the reaction was very similar. I have opted to have another test in about two weeks. I have looked all over the internet for pictures but they aren't very clear and don't look anything like my reaction. I was wondering if I had an allergic reaction to the preservative they use in the test. Does anybody know about this? I am worried about getting a second test.
Pictures are useless: it's the INDURATION of the lesion (the 'hardness' for lack of a better term) that indicates exposure to the organism. That can only be assessed by SEEING and feeling the area firsthand.
X-rays can often indicate old, dormant disease, in addition to active disease.
If you have any doubt, you need to see your physician.
i had a postive ppd test in the military in the 70 s ,also developed ARD in the mean time,could these two be connected any kind of way? i have had many lung problems from that time on
Wow, I really can't believe a doctor would put you on medication after one "positive" (and what you describe doesn't really sound like a definite positive). You don't see this doctor anymore, right?? The other posters are correct, they should have done a 2nd test on you and then an x-ray. So yes, definitely get the x-ray! And see a pulmonologist, definitely. I might be a good for you to see someone who is a specialist, instead of someone who is clearly not.
As for you wife, I also would agree, if she were given the vaccine, she would end up with something like a false positive. A skin test for her would not be accurate.
To make a very long story short, I had a PPD done several years ago. It was in the military, and to be quite honest I'm a little leery of the diagnosis. After three days the 'bump' had gone completely away and there was just a slight little red mark. I wouldn't even call it a rash. The doctor told me that I had tested positive and gave me 9 months worth of pills to take. She told me that I shouldn't have another TB test done because it could cause the bacteria to 'activate'. Now, the thing that gets me, is when I was leaving Japan (where I was stationed) I had married a Japanese woman and part of our green card paperwork was to get a TB test done on her as well. In Japan, they still gave the TB vaccination when she was born ( I think they still do) and she had this giant bump on her arm. I saw another guy walk in with his Japanese wife and apparently they had gotten the same thing and her 'bump' was just about the same size as my wife's. I really started to wonder... would I have anything to worry about if I had never taken the meds? They really made me feel horrible.
Edit: I'm not sure if this matters or not, but about a year afterwards I was diagnosed with a mild exzema(sp?).
I can't believe they gave you antibiotics for a tiny reaction without doing more follow up like X-rays. No wonder stuff is antibiotic resistant!
A question for you folks who actually give the injection - do you mark the site on the arm so that the area can be easily pinpointed for reading? If you mark it somehow, what do you use?
To make a very long story short, I had a PPD done several years ago. It was in the military, and to be quite honest I'm a little leery of the diagnosis. After three days the 'bump' had gone completely away and there was just a slight little red mark. I wouldn't even call it a rash. The doctor told me that I had tested positive and gave me 9 months worth of pills to take. She told me that I shouldn't have another TB test done because it could cause the bacteria to 'activate'. Now, the thing that gets me, is when I was leaving Japan (where I was stationed) I had married a Japanese woman and part of our green card paperwork was to get a TB test done on her as well. In Japan, they still gave the TB vaccination when she was born ( I think they still do) and she had this giant bump on her arm. I saw another guy walk in with his Japanese wife and apparently they had gotten the same thing and her 'bump' was just about the same size as my wife's. I really started to wonder... would I have anything to worry about if I had never taken the meds? They really made me feel horrible.
Edit: I'm not sure if this matters or not, but about a year afterwards I was diagnosed with a mild exzema(sp?).
Weren't you vaccinated against TB as a child/teenager?
Also, are people getting confused between the test and the vaccination?
i had a postive ppd test in the military in the 70 s ,also developed ARD in the mean time,could these two be connected any kind of way? i have had many lung problems from that time on
Weren't you vaccinated against TB as a child/teenager?
Also, are people getting confused between the test and the vaccination?
There's no effective vaccination for adults, BCG vaccine is semi-effective versus pediatric TB and some non-pulmonary TB. And yes, prior BCG vaccination can create false positives for the skin test. I don't remember from where, but there was a study suggesting half of all military positive skin tests were false positives. Pretty much any exposure to NTM would cause false positive since the PPD is so non-specific.
I recommend getting the QuantiFERON Gold blood test, which does not bring in administration and reader error unlike the skin test. Also this is very good at catching latent TB as well. I see a number of cases of MDR-TB so the blood test is what I get.
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