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TB case reported at Albany High

By SCOTT WALDMAN, Staff writer
Thursday, February 14, 2008

ALBANY -- An individual at Albany High School has been diagnosed with tuberculosis.
     
The district would not say whether the person was a student or employee. Spokesman Ron Lesko said the person was no longer in school and was being treated.
Lesko said staff and students who had contact with the individual have been notified and will be provided TB skin tests by the Albany County Department of Health. The tests will be offered in school on Feb. 27, after students return from their winter break.
Tuberculosis is a bacterial disease that is typically curable with medication and is not considered to be highly communicable. It is spread through the air when a person with untreated TB sneezes or coughs.
Symptoms include a low-grade fever, night sweats, fatigue, weight loss and a persistent cough. If left untreated, the disease can be fatal.
Ten cases of active TB are reported in Albany County annually, according to the county Department of Health. The case poses no immediate threat to the health of the general public.
In New York, 1,300 cases of active TB are reported annually. The last TB case at Albany High was in 1995.