Summit County Public Health is investigating a potential tuberculosis exposure inside Summa Akron City Hospital.
According to Summit County Public Health, a person with a confirmed case of pulmonary tuberculosis visited the Akron Children's Hospital neonatal intensive care unit at Summa Akron City Hospital in mid-November through mid-December, before being diagnosed with the disease.
Now, health officials are working to identify people who were potentially exposed to TB.
Authorities say the babies who were in the NICU at Akron Children's Hospital Main Campus were not at risk of exposure.
Summit County Public Health, Summa Akron City Hospital and Akron Children's Hospital Main Campus have identified about 50 families of infants who were in the unit during that time and may have been exposed.
Those families are being notified.
"One thing about tuberculosis is the risk of complications. That's we're looking at, the risk of complications is higher in young children, especially infants so what we want to do is make sure we look at all patient exposures," said Dr. John Bowers, from the division of pediatric infectious disease at Akron Children's Hospital.
Adult caregivers, older children and others who visited the NICU during that time period are encouraged to have a TB test in six to eight weeks to check if they were infected.
In the United States, TB is uncommon but potentially serious. The disease usually involves the lungs but can affect other parts of the body. In rare cases, people with TB can spread the disease to others. TB is spread through the air by close prolonged contact when a person coughs, speaks, laughs, or sings. It is not spread by casual contact or contact with surfaces.
Almost all cases of TB disease are curable with proper treatment and medication. Active cases of TB disease are uncommon, even after exposure. While TB is contagious, it is difficult for the disease to spread from person to person.
Anyone who wishes to get tested at Summit County Public Health can make an appointment by calling 330-375-2772 Monday through Friday and 330-283-6380 on the weekend and after hours. If you have questions, call 330-375-2662.
