TB testing done on MHS staff, students

The Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. and its Division of Public Health Services conducted a testing on students and staff of Marianas High School for tuberculosis yesterday.

The testing was done due to possible exposure as a result of a recent active case

“There was an active case of TB in the school. That person is undergoing treatment, taking antibiotics, and as a entirely precautionary measure, we identify the close contacts of this person would have had and we screen them for TB,” state epidemiologist Dr. Paul White said.

“When someone is identified as a possible case, we as public health TB Prevention and Control Program have the responsibility to protect the public by notifying and screening all possible exposure to an index case,” DPH director Margarita Aldan said in a separate interview.

The screening was done through skin testing where a fluid is injected and the skin will be observed after 42 to 78 hours after injecting to see if there is swelling. This will determine if the person is infected or not.

According to White, the school helped them identify students who were potentially exposed and those who weren’t.

Prior to conducting the screening, a letter explaining the situation was given to the staff and the parents and guardians of all students.

TB infection vs disease

Tuberculosis is a disease caused by bacteria and usually affects the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body.

A person who has TB disease is very contagious and one has a higher risk of breathing in the bacteria when one is in close contact for prolonged period of time and exposure occurs in a small, enclosed space with poor ventilation.

The bacteria of TB can spread through the air through coughing, sneezing, speaking, singing, shouting, or even laughing.

White explained that there are two forms of TB: infection and disease.

If one is infected, they will have a positive skin test, normal chest x-ray, their immune system has contained the TB bacteria but has become dormant, and the person is not sick.

A person who is infected with TB bacteria is not contagious and medicine is available to treat the infection and prevent TB disease in the future.

White said there is only a small chance of 10 percent for a person who gets infected with the bacteria for it to become a disease.

“If you are exposed, you have a 5 percent in the first two years to develop the disease and after those two years for the rest of your life, another 5 percent,” White said.

TB disease, on the other hand, does not show the bacteria in the immune system and it is awake and multiplying. A person sometimes feels sick and his or her chest x-ray is abnormal.

The symptoms of TB Disease includes prolonged cough, coughing up blood, chest pain, fever, night sweats, feeling weak or constantly tired, loss of appetite, and weight loss.

TB disease is curable, but can be fatal if not treated properly.

In the CNMI, there are more or less 20 cases of TB.

In 2015, the prevalence rate of TB was brought down to 30 cases a year from a rate of 100 new cases a year a decade ago.

“We have TB [on island], we hope to have less of it and programs will continue to work toward that,” White said.