LA HABRA : TB Testing Results Termed Good News

Orange County’s top health officer said Friday that a screening of students and teachers found no significant presence of tuberculosis at La Habra High School, where a senior girl earlier this month was hospitalized with a contagious form of the disease.

“I am exceedingly happy with the results,” said Dr. Hugh Stallworth after receiving reports that public health nurses who were on campus Friday to read the results of tuberculosis skin tests discovered that only 15.6% of the students had positive reactions.

Stallworth said the 35 positive readings among the 225 students tested who were in contact with the contagious student were no higher than the norm. He said a 1991 survey taken of a sampling of Orange County students in schools with no reports of active tuberculosis found that 17.9% tested positive.

In addition, Stallworth said, only one of the 81 teachers and other staff members skin-tested positive. And all 14 members of an unidentified boys and girls club that the contagious student attended last summer tested negative.

All students and staff members who showed positive in the skin testing were immediately given chest X-rays to determine if they have an active case of tuberculosis. The results will be available next week, said Stallworth. But he added that he does not believe that any contagious cases will be discovered.

Skin testing was recommended at La Habra High School by county health officials after all but one of the contagious student’s 10 household members were found to be infected with inactive tuberculosis. Also eight workers at a fast food outlet where she worked skin-tested positive for TB, although their lungs were clear.

Stallworth said all students and school staff members whose chest X-rays are clear of TB but have positive skin tests will be treated for six months with medication that will greatly reduce the risk that the TB will become active.