Tuberculosis exposure reported South Gwinnett High School

By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Published  December 13, 2024 7:44am EST
FOX 5 Atlanta

South Gwinnett High School (South Gwinnett High School)

The Brief

    • Health officials will test some individuals at South Gwinnett High School after a possible tuberculosis exposure.
    • The county informed parents that an individual at the school had been diagnosed with tuberculosis and had "close and continuous contact" with a group at the school. 
    • Hundreds of cases of the illness were reported in Georgia last year, though cases were down compared to the number in 2022.

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. - Some students at South Gwinnett High School will need to undergo testing after an individual was diagnosed with tuberculosis.

School leaders informed parents and students about the possible exposure in a letter sent on Wednesday.

Officials have not identified whether the infected individual is a student, a teacher, or a staff member.

As a precaution, the Gwinnett County Health Department has identified a group of people at the high school who will need to be tested. Officials say these people were in "close and continuous contact" with the ill individual.

Those who need testing will receive a letter of instructions and additional information.

Officials say the testing will be free.

What is tuberculosis?

Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria that usually attack the lungs, and it is spread through the air when an infectious person coughs or sneezes.

The number of U.S. tuberculosis cases in 2023 was the highest in a decade, according to a report in April by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Georgia, a total of 246 cases were reported in 2023, a 5.4% decrease from the year before.

The Source

  • Information for this story was taken from a letter from officials at South Gwinnett High School, the Georgia Department of Public Health's website on tuberculosis, and the Associated Press.