Screening for Active Tuberculosis (TB) Disease

If a person has a positive TB skin test or (IGRA blood test) other tests are needed to see if a person has active TB disease. If a person has TB disease in the lungs, the bacteria can also spread to other people. Screening for TB disease usually includes a check-up by a health professional for signs and symptoms of active TB disease, a chest x-ray and sputum collection.

When TB bacteria become active and begin to cause damage to the body, a person may have TB signs and symptoms. Active TB disease can develop in any part of the body.

A person may have other symptoms depending on where the TB bacteria are causing damage. Active TB disease can develop in any part of the body. A person may have other symptoms depending on where the TB bacteria are causing damage.

A chest radiograph (x-ray) is a picture of the heart, lungs and bones of the chest. A picture of the lungs helps health professionals see if a person has active TB disease in the lungs.

Sometimes, two pictures are taken: a front and a side view and bones of the chest. A picture of the lungs helps health professionals see if a person has active TB disease in the lungs. Sometimes, two pictures are taken: a front and a side view.

.How to Collect SputumSputum is mucus or phlegm found in the lungs. It is produced by a deep cough from the chest. Sputum is not saliva or spit from the mouth. Sputum collection is an important part of TB screening. It is used to find out if a person has active TB bacteria in the lungs.

Up to three plastic bottles to collect sputum samples will be given to you. Follow the steps below to collect your sputum. Do this everyday right after waking up in the morning. Use a different plastic bottle each day.

  1. Do not eat or drink, brush your teeth, smoke or use mouthwash before you collect your sputum early in the morning.
  2. Remove the plastic bottle from the plastic bag. Do not remove the lab form from the bag. Open the plastic bottle. Do not touch the inside of the bottle or the cap.
  3. Breathe in deeply 2-3 times and then cough deeply from the chest to bring up sputum from the lungs (thick sputum collects in the lungs overnight). Try to cough up at least 1 to 2 teaspoons
  4. Spit the sputum into the plastic bottle. Close the plastic bottle cap tightly.
  5. Place bottle in the plastic bag. Remove the blue plastic band from the bag to close it.
  6. Refrigerate the bag with the sputum bottle right away to keep it cold. Do not freeze the sputum bottle.
  7. Wash your hands.
  8. When the sputum samples are collected, tell your nurse or home visitor. He/she will pick up the bags with the sputum bottles and send them to the lab for testing.

    Putting a sputum collection bottle into a plastic bag.
    Sputum testing

This information is also available in the following languages. To request a copy, email us at targettb@toronto.ca or call 416-338-7600 and ask for the TB program.

  • አማርኛ / Amheric
  • العربية / Arabic
  • বাংলা / Bengali
  • 中文 / Chinese
  • فارسی / Farsi
  • Tagalog / Filipino
  • Français / French
  • ગુજરાતી / Gujarati
  • हिन्दी / Hindi
  • Magyar nyelv / Hungarian
  • 한국어 / Korean
  • ਪੰਜਾਬੀ / Punjabi
  • русский / Russian
  • Afsoomaali / Somali
  • Español / Spanish
  • བོད་སྐད་ / Tibetan
  • தமிழ் / Tamil
  • اردو / Urdu
  • Tiếng Việt / Vietnamese

If you have any questions, please contact your healthcare provider or Toronto Public Health at 416-338-7600.