Health officials testing for TB at Columbus school

COLUMBUS - Health officials screened about 120 students and staff at Columbus High School for tuberculosis Tuesday. <br> <br> Columbus Health Department officials notified the school Monday after a hospital informed the department that a student had tested positive for the disease. The boy has been released from the hospital for treatment. <br> <br> Tuberculosis is a sometimes fatal disease spread when an infected person sneezes or coughs. The symptoms include fever, fatigue and persistent cough. <br> <br> The disease is spread when a person with an active case of the disease coughs or sneezes and others breathe in the bacteria. <br> <br> Dr. Zsolt Koppanyi, director of the West Central Georgia Health District, said officials were trying to track down all those who had close contact with the student. <br> <br> ``TB isn&#39;t like measles, where anybody that passes you in the hallway could get infected,&#39;&#39; he said. ``It&#39;s usually the situation where a kid coughs and spreads it through droplets in the air, or people don&#39;t wash their hands. It&#39;s most likely to be transmitted in a confined space.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> People who test positive to the tuberculosis skin test may have a latent tuberculosis infection that is not contagious but may require medical treatment. <br> <br> Rosia Thomas, the health department&#39;s TB coordinator, said this was the 32nd tuberculosis case this year in the district&#39;s 16-county region.