COSTA MESA : No One at OCC Tests Positive for Active TB

None of the nearly 100 Orange Coast College students, staff and faculty members screened for tuberculosis tested positive for active cases of the disease, college officials said Thursday, a month after TB was diagnosed in a 21-year-old student.

Of the 98 students screened by the Orange County Health Care agency, 25 had positive skin test results, but subsequent chest X-rays showed that the disease was not active, according to college spokesman Jim Carnett.

One student, who previously tested positive for TB, needs further follow-up screening to determine if the disease is active, Carnett said.

School officials said the student who reported her private physician’s diagnosis of active tuberculosis in April is at home taking medication and will not be permitted to return until she is no longer communicable. In all, 122 students, staff and faculty were exposed to the student, who was enrolled in four classes.

School officials are still trying to locate the remaining 22 people exposed to the student, said Dr. Hugh Stallworth, the county’s chief medical officer and director of public health.

“We’re in the process of tracking them all down,” Stallworth said. “In a school setting--especially a large campus like OCC--it’s difficult to get everyone on the first salvo.”