‘Unprecedented’ TB outbreak recorded in Kansas with nearly 70 cases recorded
‘Unprecedented’ TB outbreak recorded in Kansas with nearly 70 cases recorded
Share:
‘Currently, Kansas has the largest outbreak that they’ve ever had in history’ said a Kansas Department of Health and Environment official. An unprecedented wave of tuberculosis infections has struck the state of Kansas as nearly 70 cases have been recorded, say officials.
![[Public health officials announced 67 active outbreak cases and 79 latent infections in Kansas City, Kansas, as of Friday since 2024]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/11/iStock-1226065553.jpg)
KDHE Deputy Secretary Ashley Goss told the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee Tuesday: “Currently, Kansas has the largest outbreak that they’ve ever had in history.”. But despite this, officials stated that the outbreak had a very low risk to the general public and surrounding counties.
TB is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium that typically strikes the lungs but can also hinder other parts of the body. It is spread through the area, when a person with an active infection coughs, speaks, or sings. Two strains of the infection exist, namely an active infection which can cause nausea and is contagious, and a latent infection which is the opposite of the former: non-contagious and does not cause sickness.
People cannot catch the disease through kissing, shaking hands, sharing food, drink, or toothbrushes, or through sharing bedding or the same toilet in a household. If a person catches TB, it can be treated with antibiotics and shortly after starting treatment, the active infection will no longer be infectious to others.
