A student at the University of Colorado Denver’s Auraria Campus has been diagnosed with an active case of tuberculosis.
The student has been isolated and is receiving treatment, spokeswoman Jacque Montgomery said.
“Our focus right now is educating the handful of students and staff who may have been exposed,” Montgomery said.
The infection can spread through the air, but transmission usually requires more than 100 hours of continued indoor exposure, Dr. Randall Reves, spokesman for Denver Public Health Department said.
“It’s not like the flu that spreads rapidly,” Reves, who worked on the UCD investigation, said. “It really is a much more focal exposure.”
A few students who may have been exposed are being tested for the infection. While tuberculosis is rare in the U.S., isolated cases do occur at several college campuses every year.
Most college campus cases are among students who have traveled to work or study in countries where tuberculosis is common, particularly countries in Asia and Africa, or students who grew up in a foreign country and carry a dormant form of the infection.
Reves would not say if the student had traveled recently or grew up in another country.
The bacteria that causes the infection by attacking the lungs, can remain dormant in some patients, or it can spread and cause an “active case.” The infection is detected by a skin or blood test.
Following standard treatment, the student will be isolated for about three weeks until he is no longer considered contagious and will remain on various medications for 6 to 9 months.
The illness is not a drug resistant strain.
The campus community was notified of the case Tuesday via an e-mail sent out by Samantha Ortiz, dean of students.
Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794 or jsteffen@denverpost.com
