HOUSTON, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Ten new cases of tuberculosis (TB) were found in a high school in Great Houston region, local media reported on Wednesday.
According to a report by Houston Chronical, ten new cases of tuberculosis were discovered in a mass screening conducted on Aug. 3 at George Bush High School in Fort Bend, southwestern part of the Great Houston.
The newspaper quoted the Fort Bend County Health and Human Services as reporting that the discovery came after a round of mass screening took place on June 19. Of the 228 students and staff who were tested, 10 people showed positive for the infection in the June test.
The second round of testing was made to determine if any other students and faculty were showing positive for TB infection eight weeks past the break in contact, the agency said in a release. Of the 559 students and faculty who were tested during the second round, 10 new people tested positive for the infection.
However, experts are not sure yet if all 20 infections are related or from separate exposures. Each of the infected people are being evaluated and offered preventative medication.
Symptoms of TB include persistent coughing that lasts more than two weeks, unexplained fevers, night sweats, unexplained weight loss and coughing up blood.
