Officials at University of California, Davis, started contact tracing students Wednesday after an individual carrying tuberculosis was identified on campus.
The school is working in coordination with the Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency to conduct contact tracing throughout the area and to identify and notify individuals who may have been exposed to the highly contagious and potentially lethal disease, according to a news release shared by the institution.
The focus at this time is on individuals who spent at least eight hours with the patient and those who’ve been in close contact will need further evaluation due to the risk posed to the community. (RELATED: ‘Nauseous, Shocked’: Suspected UC, Davis, Serial Killer’s Former Friends Speak Out)
Contagious #tuberculosis incidence identified at UC Davis …
| #California | #TB | #infection | #bacteria | #Mycobacterium | By @danmacht via @kcranews https://t.co/0CFnYAYrTA
— Microbes.info (@MicrobesInfo) December 22, 2023
Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection that attacks the lungs, but can also impact the kidneys, spine and brain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Some individuals have limited or no symptoms and the disease can spread through air particles ejected when an individual speaks, coughs or sings.
Apparently, you can’t spread tuberculosis via kissing or so the CDC claims (make that make sense).
In some cases, tuberculosis can cause other symptoms, such as fatigue, weakness, loss of appetite, chills and night sweats. A number of treatments are available for the disease, which is good because it’s believed to be one of the top killers of humans throughout all of modern history and was known as “consumption” until relatively recently, as noted by Historians.