Two tuberculosis cases have been confirmed at high schools on Long Island.
The Nassau County Department of Health informed Bethpage Health School that someone connected to the school had the bacterial infection.
Bethpage Union Free School District Superintendent of Schools Dave Schneider wrote in a letter to the school community that the individual was being treated and monitored by health officials.
Contact tracing is underway and parents or guardians will be informed if the sick individual is a close contact to their child.
A similar situation is playing out in Suffolk County, where “an individual in the school community” at Patchogue-Medford High School is being treated. The school said there was no risk of further transmission.
Suffolk County Department of Health is also conducting contact tracing to see who should get tested.
It’s unclear if the cases are linked.
“Common symptoms of active tuberculosis disease include cough, chest pain, and coughing up blood,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. People with TB can also experience weakness or fatigue, weight loss, no appetite, chills, fever and night sweats.
While highly contagious, not everyone who comes into contact with tuberculosis gets sick; the disease can be fatal if not properly treated.
