Active tuberculosis cases reported in Oxnard, Palm Springs
An employee at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Oxnard and a middle-school student in Palm Springs have been diagnosed with active tuberculosis.
An employee at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Oxnard was recently diagnosed with active tuberculosis, the Ventura County Public Health Department announced Thursday.
Ventura County Public Health Tuberculosis Program personnel notified Amazon staff at the location on Monday and Tuesday of potential exposure, the department said.
Approximately 180 people were potentially exposed, according to the health department.
"There is currently no known danger to the public," the department said in a statement Thursday.
The specific date of diagnosis was not released.
Testing, symptoms, treatment plans and other information were offered to staff through the public health agency.
Free testing will be available next week for staff and close contacts, and the Ventura County Public Health Tuberculosis Program is continuing to monitor the situation and track the potential outbreak, the department said.
In Palm Springs, a middle school student was also recently treated for tuberculosis. The Riverside County Department of Health said a Raymond Cree Middle School student recently became ill with active tuberculosis. The child was hospitalized and is now recovering at home, the department said.
On Thursday the Palm Springs Unified School District notified parents and guardians of about 50 students who may have been in contact with the child. A testing clinic is planned for the campus next week.
In most cases, people infected with the illness won't see it develop into active tuberculosis, but will simply remain infected with the bacteria with no symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It will still show up on a skin test.
From the Ventura County Public Health statement:
"There is a difference between a TB infection and (active) TB disease. People with TB disease are sick from germs that are active in their body. Common symptoms of active TB include frequent coughing, feeling weak, having a fever, losing weight, coughing up blood, or sweating frequently at night.
"People with TB disease can give the infection to others through the air by those who frequently share the same air and are in close contact.
"Although quite common throughout most of the world, TB is relatively uncommon to acquire in the United States. The State TB Control Branch estimates that 16% of foreign-born people in the United States will have a positive blood test for tuberculosis."
For further information: California Tuberculosis Control Branch