County Says College Student Diagnosed With Tuberculosis

WHITE PLAINS, NY — The Westchester County Health Department said Tuesday that a Monroe College student at the New Rochelle campus was diagnosed with active Tuberculosis (TB). The student, who is not from Westchester, is being treated, is not on campus and is expected to make a full recovery.

The Westchester County Health Department, working closely with Monroe College, identified and notified those students and faculty who were exposed to recommend and offer free evaluation and testing.

Tuberculosis is an infection that usually causes cough and fever. It spreads through the air when a person with active TB coughs or sneezes. A long period of close contact with an infected person is usually required for tuberculosis to be transmitted.

In 2018, Westchester County had the second highest case rate of residents with TB outside of New York City, according to the New York State Department of Health. Last year, cases of active TB were identified in Westchester residents who ranged in age from 8 to 81 years old.

TB also touched the lives of hundreds of Westchester residents who were exposed to someone with infectious TB at work, school or home, in a social setting or a healthcare facility. The Westchester County Department of Health informed them about their exposure, offered them screening to determine whether they had the disease, and provided follow-up treatment to those who needed it.

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