Fairfax county, Virginia, is facing an outbreak of TB. An outbreak at the local high school has left over 400 families at risk for developing symptoms.
LA and Jacksonville, Florida both have their own ongoing outbreaks (TB takes a minimum of 6 months to cure, IF you can follow the rigorous, side-effect laden treatment schedule, IF you can afford it, and IF you don’t have a mutated form of TB resistant to antibiotics).
Highly contagious (not just coughing and sneezing but talking can spread it), TB is often deadly. As with most diseases, people with weakened immune systems are usually the first to succumb.
Government health officials are quick to downplay the seriousness (the Florida outbreak was/is kept very quiet—how much reporting have you seen?) but the truth is there’s concern in the medical community. Most outbreaks have been on the coasts—you have denser populations, and more world travellers. Even so, here in Colorado at any suspect symptoms some doctors will prescribe harsh antibiotics as a just-in-case (especially for school children, who are especially prone to contagious diseases!).
It’s important to remember that TB is often portrayed (these days, at least) as a disease of vagrants. But it spreads easily—the Florida outbreak spread throughout the population through community volunteers & hospital workers before they realized they had a patient zero with TB.
The only thing you can really do is stick to the basics. Wash your hands frequently, especially when in public places, fortify your immune system with rest, nutrition, exercise, and supplements like colloidal silver, and stay home if you feel sick.
One of the scary things about Tuberculosis symptoms is not everyone gets them. Some people are just carriers. So in a case like Virginia, extra vigilance is required. Your high schooler may not be showing symptoms, but may be bringing the bacteria home anyway.
In any case, see a doctor if you have a cough, fever, or other signs of respiratory illness. Besides TB, WHO seems to think MERS could become a much bigger deal.
Have you heard about any TB cases in your area?
