A member of the Stuttgart community was recently diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB) and has been hospitalized in a Host Nation facility for treatment. The patient is receiving appropriate medical care.

Transmission of TB requires direct contact with someone diagnosed with TB who is coughing and sneezing. While transmission is possible from workplcae contact, persons living in the home of someone diagnosed with TB would have the highlest risk of exposure due to the close proximity of family members. Symptoms of TB include a frequent cough for three weeks or longer, fever, weakness, loss of appetite, night sweats, and unintentional weight loss. If you are experiencing these symptoms, please call the Public Health Nurse at 0711-680-6383.

Please note that TB, while a serious disease, is much more difficult to spread than a viral illness such as the flu. Even family members with close daily contact with an actively infected individual may not become infected. The appropriate evaluation for individuals exposed to TB depends on the duration of exposure, the proximity to the individual, and the environment in which contact occurs (for example, a well-ventilated area would decrease the risk of exposure compared to contact in an enclosed space, such as a small car).

Patch Health Clinic is currently engaged in screening close contacts of the individual diagnosed with TB. For more information, please contact your Primary Care Manager or the Public Health Nurse at 0711-680-6383, or visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at http://cdc.gov/tb.