Infants in Sacramento, Solano County Hospitals Exposed to Tuberculosis
On Tuesday, Sacramento and Solano county and hospital officials warned the parents of 35 infants that their newborns had been exposed to tuberculosis while in neonatal intensive care units at two hospitals, the Sacramento Bee reports.
TB is a bacterial infection that typically attacks a patient's lungs and can spread through the air.
Details of Exposure
Officials determined that a patient with TB visited the neonatal intensive care unit at Sutter Memorial Hospital in Sacramento between March 14 and March 31. The same individual visited the neonatal intensive care unit at NorthBay Medical Center in Fairfield from March 31 to April 2, and from April 11 to April 19, according to officials.
The officials determined that 20 infants in Sacramento County and 15 in Solano County were exposed to the infection.
By law, the officials cannot disclose the identity of TB patients, and they did not say why the individual was visiting the neonatal centers. However, they said the patient is a Solano County resident and not a hospital staff member.
According to officials, the patient now is in isolation and receiving treatment.
Response to Exposure
Officials hoped to reach all of the parents on Tuesday to inform them that infants exposed to TB require testing or immediate antibiotics because their age makes them more vulnerable to contracting the infection, according to the Bee.
Officials plan to tell hospital staff members and visitors of their possible exposure after all parents were notified.
Olivia Kasirye -- chief health officer in Sacramento County -- said that although officials are taking precautions, they "believe that the risk of infection with TB in this particular case is low" (Craft, Sacramento Bee, 5/23).
Broadcast Coverage
On Tuesday, Capital Public Radio's "KXJZ News" reported on the TB exposure among infants at the two hospitals (Moffitt, "KXJZ News," Capital Public Radio, 5/22).
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