Case of TB confirmed at a school in Manchester
Public Health England confirmed the case at St Cuthbert's RC Primary in Withington.
A case of Tuberculosis has been confirmed at a primary school in Withington.
Letters have been sent home to parents to explain the situation at St Cuthbert's and pupils and staff who've been in prolonged contact with the case are now being tested for the disease.
Public Health England (PHE) says the person is being treated by specialist services and is responding well to treatment.
Dr Merav Kliner, Consultant at the Greater Manchester Health Protection Team, said:
‘’TB is a disease that typically requires close, prolonged and frequent contact before transmission occurs. Because of this, the greatest risk of spread is to people who live in the same household as a person with this disease. The risk to other contacts, including those in a school or workplace setting, is low.
“However, purely as a precautionary measure, we are working closely with the school to arrange screening for close contacts in line with national guidelines.
“It is important that everyone is aware of the symptoms of TB, which include a prolonged unexplained cough, fevers and weight loss. Greater awareness can mean the condition is diagnosed much faster.
The symptoms of active TB disease can include a cough, weight loss, fever and poor appetite.
However, TB bacteria can sleep in your body, often for many years, without making you ill.
This is called latent TB and can be treated with antibiotics. People with latent TB are not infectious and cannot spread TB disease or TB infection to others.