AHS notifying individuals of potential tuberculosis exposure

CALGARY - Alberta Health Services (AHS) has today mailed notification letters to 53 individuals potentially exposed to a confirmed case of tuberculosis (TB) in the Calgary Zone.

Notification letters include information on arrangements for standard TB assessment and screening and treatment, if required.

The exposures were contained to one Calgary Zone school and are not a risk to the general public.

Letters are expected to be delivered within two to three business days. Only those who receive notification letters from AHS are considered potentially exposed to this case. Risk of transmission to these individuals is low and the case does not present any ongoing risk at the school or to the general public.

Though this case is not a risk to the general public, AHS Public Health is informing the public of this case and followup actions as a matter of transparency.

AHS’ TB Services and Communicable Disease Control teams, together with the Calgary Zone Medical Officer of Health, are working to manage the followup screening that is routine in response to any potential exposure to a case of active infectious TB.

AHS thanks these teams and their support staff for their response. These efforts are in keeping with a commitment to high-quality care, and values of excellence and safety.

To protect patient confidentiality, no further case-specific details will be released by AHS, including the name of the school where the exposure took place.

General information on TB is available on the AHS website. Albertans with questions about TB can call Health Link 24/7 at 811.