Parents and faculty at Wy’east Middle School were notified Tuesday that Clark County Public Health is investigating a report of tuberculosis connected to the school.
Evergreen Public Schools spokeswoman Gail Spolar said the district was notified by Clark County Public Health that someone associated with the school had been diagnosed with the infection. School officials then sent letters home to Wy’east Middle School parents alerting them of the case.
The district does not know the identity of the individual, as they are protected by federal privacy laws.
“We want to be clear, there isn’t a TB outbreak,” Spolar said. “Someone has been diagnosed with TB that happens to be at Wy’east.”
Clark County Public Health Director Dr. Alan Melnick said the agency was alerted of the TB case within the last month and began investigating.
The risk of the infection spreading is low, he said.
“(TB) is a lot less contagious than influenza or measles. TB germs do not live very long once they are coughed up. To get TB, you really have to spend significant time in a fairly close environment with somebody else,” Melnick said.
Once someone becomes infected, they don’t immediately get sick. In fact, nine out of 10 people who contract TB never get sick; the infection can stay dormant, Melnick said. The most common symptoms are fever, cough, weight loss and night sweats.
“We are doing due diligence to identify anyone who might have spent time with that person. But to those people, the risk is low,” Melnick said. “Fortunately, TB in the United States is uncommon, but it’s not zero.”
Clark County Public Health will send an additional letter to those who may have come into contact with the infected person, and will set up clinics where people can get screened. However, people can also go to their own clinic, Melnick said.
“The general public is not at risk for this,” he added.
— Reporter Katie Gillespie contributed to this report.
Jessica Prokop: 360-735-4551; jessica.prokop@columbian.com; twitter.com/JProkop16
