DPH officials are also in the process of screening individuals, including children, who may have been in contact with the two people infected with drug resistant TB; those screenings include blood test and chest x-rays.
She said while tuberculosis is an airborne illness, it typically involves people who have been in close contact with one another and is not spread through casual contact.
Nydam said DPH also has alerted hospital emergency departments and health care providers that may see patients from Hart, Franklin or Stephens Counties as a precautionary measure.
"The symptoms of TB can very often mimic other things, and right now we're in the middle of a widespread flu season, so we want to make sure that the healthcare providers,the hospitals who are seeing patients that might come in think about tuberculosis, think about MDRTB," Nydam said.
DPH said signs and symptoms of multi-drug resistant TB can include:
- Prolonged cough
- Coughing up blood or blood-stained mucus
- Fever
- Night sweats
- Weight loss
- Malaise
For general information about TB, visit the CDC website https://www.cdc.gov/tb/default.htm.
