Case of ‘world’s most infectious disease’ detected at senior school – as health chiefs race to contain spread
THE world’s most infectious disease has been detected in a senior school, according to health chiefs.
Parents of pupils at Morgan Academy in Dundee, Scotland, were sent a letter on April 24, saying one child had tested positive for tuberculosis (TB).
Scotland has seen a surge in cases of the deadly Victorian disease in the past couple of years, with infection rates jumping 40 per cent from 2022 to 2023.
This was the largest annual increase in infections since 2017, figures from Public Health Scotland suggest.
In a letter, seen by The Courier, NHS Tayside said it was getting in touch with anyone who has been in “prolonged contact” with the pupil.
No other details about the case have been shared.
“As a precaution, health workers will be contacting a small number of people who may have had prolonged contact to offer further information and advice,” the letter read.
“We would like to reassure you that the risk to young people and staff at Morgan Academy is low,” it added.
“Young people should continue to attend the school and take part in all their usual and planned activities as normal, including all scheduled SQA exams.”
TB is the deadliest infectious disease in human history – even now, it regularly kills about 1.3 million people around the world each year – more than HIV/AIDS and malaria combined.
It was briefly overtaken by Covid-19, but it reclaimed the top spot last year.
The disease has started to surge globally for the first time in decades, with 7.5million people diagnosed in 2022 – the highest number ever recorded.
It is not as common in the UK as it is elsewhere in the rest of the world but in recent years, there has been a resurgence.
The latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency showed cases in England jumped by more than 13 per cent last year, rising from 4,855 in 2023 to 5,480 in 2022.
The increase in cases is seen in both UK-born and non-UK born people (after cases steadily rose among people born outside the UK for a number of years).
Earlier this month, a case was detected in a primary school in East Sussex.
In July 2022, Brits were urged to be on the lookout for signs of the deadly Victorian disease after an outbreak at a university in Wales.
TB is a bacterial infection that begins by eating away at the lungs, destroying tissue. It is at this stage, when the infection is most active, that it is at its most infectious.
When someone with active TB coughs, they release small droplets containing the bug into the air, for someone else to breathe in.
From the lungs, it can move to other parts of the body, like the tummy, bones, glands and nervous system.
Symptoms – like prolonged cough, chest pain, weakness, and fever – can be mistaken for a cold.
Depending on a person’s age and health, they can suffer from an active infection for over a year.
During this time, they may experience weight loss, loss of appetite, and severe abdominal pain, which can eventually lead to lung collapse, fluid buildup, or other serious – and deadly – complications.
How can I protect myself and my children against TB?
There is a shot to protect you against tuberculosis called the BCG vaccine.
It’s given during childhood and is currently the most widely used shot globally.
It is no longer offered to secondary school kids in the UK and instead only targets young children deemed most at risk.
The NHS recommends it for the following groups:
- Babies who live in areas of the UK where TB is more common
- Babies and children who live with someone who has TB
- Babies and children who were born or lived in a country where TB is more common
- Babies and children whose parents or grandparents were born in a country where TB is more common
- People aged 35 and under who are spending more than 3 months in a country where TB is more common
- People at risk of getting TB through their work, such as healthcare workers who work with people who have TB