Tuberculosis diagnosis leads 226 Georgia high school students, staff to get tested: report
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}More than 200 Georgia high school students will be tested for tuberculosis after one teenager was found to have the bacterial disease, according to school officials.
A letter was sent to parents at Discovery High School in Lawrenceville on Friday informing them of the student’s diagnosis, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
They were also told the Gwinnett County Health Department would be conducting tests on faculty and students who had been in “close and continuous contact” with the student.
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The health department identified 226 people who are required to get tested, the Gwinnett Daily Post reported. There are about 2,667 students in total, according to a Gwinnett County Public School spokesperson.
School remained open as usual on Monday, according to the AJC, and the school's regular cleaning procedures were sufficient.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Gwinnett County Health Department will reportedly conduct the tests on Wednesday for free and will return Friday to review the results.
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“The tuberculin skin test (TST) is a procedure whereby a small amount of tuberculin purified protein derivative (PPD) is injected just under the skin,” the health department reportedly wrote to the parents. “If a person has been infected, this injection will cause a reaction within 48 hours.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}If anyone shows a reaction, they will have to get more blood tests, WSBTV reported.
Tuberculosis, caused by a bacterium that attacks the lungs, is spread through the air, not by touch or sharing food, according to the CDC. If it goes untreated, the disease can be fatal.