Tuberculosis Cases on the Rise in Santa Clara County
County sees a 14% increase in TB cases; Coalition calls for greater resources to fight disease
San Jose, Calif. – In honor of the upcoming World TB Day, health advocates and community leaders gathered at the county’s Tuberculosis Clinic this morning, where they released the latest TB data and called attention to the growing public health threat.
“For the first time since 2002, we have seen a significant increase in active TB cases,” announced Dr. Sundari Mase, the Santa Clara County TB Controller. “It is essential that we remain committed to combating this deadly lung disease through public education, testing and treatment.”
In 2006, Santa Clara County experienced a 14% increase in active TB cases and the largest increase in absolute numbers of cases in all of California. The county’s active TB case rate of 12.8 (per 100,000 people) ranks third in the state and far outpaces the state and national rates (in 2005, 7.9 and 4.8 respectively). In addition, it is estimated that approximately 1 in 10 individuals have latent TB infection.
Tuberculosis is a bacterial lung disease which can remain dormant in infected individuals for years. However, once an infected individual develops active TB disease, he/she may become very ill and extremely contagious. Symptoms of active TB disease include a fever, coughing, fatigue, weight loss, diminished appetite and coughing up blood. Although TB is completely curable, if left untreated or if drug-resistant, the disease can cause death. TB can take six to nine months to treat and even longer if the strain is resistant to drugs.
“Many people think that TB is something that we don’t have to worry about anymore, but the disease continues to be a problem here in our county,” said Dr. Marty Fenstersheib, the Santa Clara County Health Officer. “We are also facing new challenges stemming from a rise in complex cases and multi-drug resistant TB, making it even more important for people to get tested and treated for TB before they are at risk for serious health effects.”
“This latest resurgence serves as a reminder that we can not afford to relax our efforts to fight TB,” added Margo Sidener, CEO of Breathe California of the Bay Area and a co-chair of the Tuberculosis Prevention Partnership. “Decision makers at all levels of government must commit the funding and resources needed to fight this disease both at home and abroad. Only then will we be able to eliminate TB from our local communities.”
The Tuberculosis Prevention Partnership is co-chaired by Breathe California, Asian Americans for Community Involvement and the Santa Clara County Public Health Department. Since 1999, the coalition of interested individuals and community organizations has worked to establish a community-wide effort to fight TB.
March 20, 2007
Media Contacts:
Laurel Anderson, (408) 299-5119
Dave Low, (408) 998-5865