TB is an abbreviation of the word Tuberculosis and is how people often refer to the disease. Bovine TB is a disease caused by similar bacteria called Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis). Bovine TB mainly affects cattle but can also affect humans. Almost all of the information on this website refers to the disease in humans.

What happens if you have tuberculosis?

If this occurs in the lungs, the bacteria can actually create a hole in the lung. Some people develop active TB disease soon after becoming infected, before their immune system can fight the TB bacteria. Other people may get sick later, when their immune system becomes weak for another reason.