Prison-Related TB Strain Kills 13 in N.Y.
A new drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis has killed 12 New York state prisoners and one guard and has the potential for an “explosive” spread through the prison population, officials said Friday.
The prisoners and the guard all had “compromised immune systems,” a Department of Correctional Services statement said.
An official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the inmates were all infected with the virus that causes AIDS, and that the guard had cancer.
Four inmates from the Auburn state prison in central New York died at the University Hospital of the Health Science Center in Syracuse, and eight from New York City’s Queensboro state prison died at St. Clare’s Hospital there.
The guard who died was also from Auburn and was assigned to watch the inmates being treated in Syracuse, said state Corrections Commissioner Thomas Coughlin.
While the drug-resistant TB is stubborn and does not respond to normal treatment, it can be treated with other drugs if it is identified, a state health official said.
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