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1278 BCE
What is Tuberculosis?(date is when TB was first written about in India)
Tuberculosis(TB) is a disease that affects the lungs and other organs. This disease can be transmitted through air particles or some bodily fluids like blood, saliva etc. The bacteria that TB is made up of is from a group called mycobacterium. there are 54 subspecies of bacteria in this group. -
1278 BCE
Consequences that Affect the Body
Symptoms included a general unwell feeling(weak, fever and nauseous), fatigue and weight loss, persistent coughing for weeks on end(in bad cases blood would be coughed up). finally In rare circumstances TB can affect the brain, kidneys, skin, bones, joints or lymph nodes. -
The Causes of Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis(TB) dates back around 9,000 years. There was evidence of TB found in a mother and daughter buried in an ancient city called Atlit Yam under the mediterranean sea off the coast of israel. Although This isn't very relevant to the TB epidemic in the 18th century. When TB became an epidemic it was in Western Europe around the 18th century. -
What Caused TB to Become an Epidemic
In the 18th century TB was declared an epidemic in Western Europe. The mortality rate was at 900 deaths for every 100,000 people in Western Europe. It often took the lives of young people hence the name: "The Robber of Youth. Another name it was known for was "Captain Among these Men of Death." -
The Consequences of Colonization/Immigration
There is no way of knowing for sure how TB got to Canada. It could have come from South America, it could have been there the whole time or it could have come from Western Europe. Chances are TB was brought over from Europe because that's what evidence supports. Research shows that immigrants settled in upper and lower canada in the late 17th century and brought it with them. They then migrated to Western Canada in the 19th century and spread it. -
The Consequences of the Westerners on the Indigenous Population
In the late 18th century Canada broke the record for the biggest outbreak compared to population size. This was because of the large indigenous population. They didn't have the proper treatment and no natural immunity to TB since the indigenous had rarely been exposed. -
The Causes of the Decline in Cases of TB in Canada during the 1920s?
Cases of tuberculosis started to rapidly decrease in the 1920s. Hygiene was improved which made TB spread less. Public clinics were opened and more people were educated on TB. In poor crowded neighborhoods the cases climbed because of the health of the inhabitants and hygiene of the areas. -
What did the Consequences of TB Hold for the Indigenous Population?
New reserve systems and residential schools contributed to widespread TB amongst indigenous populations. Indigenous people were rarely let into sanatoriums purely because of racism. Even in the 1990s tuberculosis was still 8 - 10 times higher in indigenous peoples compared to other canadians. It would have been much worse in the 1920s but that wasn't paid attention because of the systemic and personal racism. -
The Consequences of the Ever Changing Healthcare Industry on TB
Collapse therapy was just being introduced. It was experimental and not yet universal. Collapse therapy is when parts of the ribs are removed in order to collapse the infected lung. This gave the lung time to rest and heal. Since this method was expensive and very dangerous at the time people often had to find other ways. Most doctors just recommended lots of rest and healthy eating habits. There was also medications being tested. At the time those drugs were often more hurtful than helpful. -
How did People Shape Whether the Consequences of TB were Positive or Negative?
To fight the threat of Tb people had to think of new ways kill the disease. Many methods have been used and have been successful. One of which was Isolation. An example of this is Sanatoriums. Sanatoriums were essentially a quarantine zone. People with TB would go there and be fed, given beds, exercised, educated and treated. Depending on which province you were in the sanitorium could be free like in Saskatchewan. Not all provinces were free. -
What Caused the Decline in TB in Canada During the 1930s?
New methods and practices have been introduced and the field continues to evolve and expand. Collapse therapy has become much more common, then 1 in 3 people who had TB went through some form of collapse therapy. Still not extremely effective but improved drugs were being experimented with. These medications were still not very efficient but progress was being made. -
How Did the Indigenous Suffered the Consequences for the Causes Colonizers Created?
In the 1930s the death rate in residential schools had the highest out of anywhere in the entire world. The mortality rate was approximately 8,000/100,000. That is all youth that was dying. To put that in perspective the Canadian mortality rate at the same time was only 79/100,000. The government also tested vaccinations on the indigenous in the 1930s rather than addressing public health issues. -
The Consequences of Systemic Racism Caused by TB
The federal government started building "Indian Hospitals" in order to "protect" the white population. People believed that because of the high rate of TB in indigenous they had spread all of it. The real reason was because they were deprived of health care and treatment. -
The Consequences so Far
Since the 1930s TB has drastically improved in mortality rate and treatment. There has been spikes here and there but they have been resolved. The world has both caused the consequences and suffered the consequences of TB. Millions have died and the more research done shows more causes and consequences. It's been a long hard time to get to where we are and it will continue to be. Maybe not for very long though. -
The end of Tuberculosis
The World Health Organization(WHO) has committed to eradicating TB by 2050. They plan on doing this with the use of vaccines and more research on the disease.