Amarillo Tuberculosis Outbreaks Spreads Beyond Fannin Middle School

The recent 37 confirmed cases of tuberculosis at Fannin Middle school isn't the end of the outbreak in Amarillo.  The Amarillo Department of Public Health warns that even though the investigation and testing was limited to Fannin, the spread of tuberculosis is not limited to students and faculty of Fannin Middle School.

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“So there were more than 250 because that was just doing the school piece. Then there were other people that might have been church contacts or other contacts. We identified everyone we could in regard to family, church activity, social activities and other things that this contact was involved in and pursued those contacts to then test them for TB,” said Dr. Roger Smalligan, the public health authority for Potter and Randall County."

“We did identify some other people that did have a conversion of their skin TB test in the community and have also been offered and encouraged to take the free preventive medicine to keep them from developing active TB,” said Smalligan."
As far as they know, there are still 7 subjects that need to be tested.

The Department of Public Health and school officials announced an expansion of testing to the entire school, including faculty and staff. However, parents or family members of students, even those who tested positive for exposure, would not be tested.

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“If the student is simply exposed, they have a positive skin TB test but a healthy chest x-ray, that student is not contagious and so their family is not at risk,” said Casie Stoughton, assistant director of the Department of Public Health."