A year-long tuberculosis outbreak in the Kansas City, Kansas area has taken local experts aback, despite not being the largest in U.S. history as claimed by state health officials. The outbreak has killed two people since January 2024 and has left authorities concerned.
According to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease doctor at the University of Kansas Health System, the high case counts are a “stark warning.” There are currently 67 people being treated for active TB and 79 with latent TB.
TB is caused by bacteria that lives in the lungs and spreads through the air when talking, coughing or singing. It can take two forms: “active” TB, which causes symptoms like prolonged coughing, night sweats, fever, weight loss and swollen glands, and “latent” TB, where the bacteria hibernates without causing symptoms.
The outbreak in Kansas has led to concerns about the disease’s spread, but health officials assure that there is no threat to the general public. Meanwhile, a vaccine is available but generally not recommended due to low risk of infection and potential interference with diagnosis tests.
TB is a leading cause of infectious disease death worldwide and has been on the rise globally. In 2023, it killed 1.25 million people and infected 8 million, the highest count since global tracking began.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/tuberculosis-tb-outbreak-kansas-largest-b6b58f4f5461abb430745e3a8e7dc758