National Jewish Health
TB History
National Jewish Health began serving patients in 1899 in response to the great numbers of destitute individuals suffering from tuberculosis. Learn more.
Genetic studies suggest that M. tuberculosis has been present for at least 15,000 years. Evidence of tuberculosis in humans dates back to 2400-3400 B.C where mummies have been shown to have evidence of disease in their spines. Hippocrates created the term phithis, or consumption, in 460 BC, because of the significant weight loss associated with the disease. Despite its frequency at the time, the cause of tuberculosis was unknown.
Searching for a Cause
By the 17th century, anatomical and pathological descriptions of tuberculosis began to appear in the medical literature. The contagious nature of the disease was suspected as early as 1546 when Girolamo Tracastoro wrote that bed sheets and clothing of a consumptive could contain contagious particles. In 1720, Benjamin Marten, an English physician, was the first to suspect that tuberculosis could be caused by "minute leaving creatures" and that by coming into contact with a consumptive an individual could contract the disease.
In a landmark study, the French army physician Jean-Antoine Villemin demonstrated in 1865 that tuberculosis could be transmitted from humans to animals and hypothesized that a specific organism caused the disease. It was not until 1882, however, that Robert Koch convincingly demonstrated that M. tuberculosis was the cause of tuberculosis.
Evolution of Treatment
Despite the identification of the causative agent, treatment was elusive. The sanatorium movement, which had begun slowly in the mid 19th century, became widespread during the early to mid 20th century. In addition to bed rest and clean air, some patients had their lungs collapsed or surgically resected (partially removed).
It was not until 1943 that Selman Waksman discovered a compound that acted against M. tuberculosis, called streptomycin. The compound was first given to a human patient in November 1949 and the patient was cured. Subsequently, it was noted that some patients who received streptomycin improved only to become ill again because the tubercle bacillus had developed resistance to the drug. It was not until the development of additional anti-tuberculosis drugs that truly effective therapy became a reality.
