Nearly 1,800 students and faculty members at Indio High School in Southern California are expected to be tested for tuberculosis Friday after one student was diagnosed with the contagious bacterial infection last month, the Associated Press reported.
After Riverside County health officials tested 130 students earlier this week for the infection, 45 tested positive for possible exposure. The testing is scheduled to resume today.
County officials said they do not think the infection has spread to any other schools or surrounding neighborhoods.
"We have seen these things happen in other parts of the state and the world. We know how to treat them, and how to cure this disease," Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit told the Desert Sun ."And not everyone who tests positive is going to have a serious bout with this disease."
Noemi Munoz told the AP her son is one of the 45 students who showed signs of exposure. She said health officials could have acted more quickly and given students tests.
"I feel like it should have been done before Thanksgiving break, when we were all first notified," she said. "I think that would have contained it a little bit better."
County Officials announced that students who skip the tuberculosis test will not be able to return to school in January, after the holiday break, until they are checked out.
Riverside County is covering the expenses of any students or staff that require tuberculosis treatment, but the clinic is not open to the general public. They are not offering testing for the parents or siblings of Indio High School students at this point because officials don't think they are at risk.
"I am not recommending that the families themselves be tested at this time because there is no evidence that any individual family members had contact with that first case," Dr. Cameron Kaiser, Riverside County public health officer, told The Desert Sun. "At this time, we are trying to figure out who had contact with the original case directly."
The student who was diagnosed with the disease in November is expected to make a full recovery, the AP reported.
Tuberculosis is typically attacks the lungs. General symptoms include fatigue, weight loss, fever and night sweats. A person needs to spend an extended time close to someone who has the disease in order to become infected.
Treatment for the infection involves taking medications, in some cases for up to nine months, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
