VA Pittsburgh Notifying 400 Veterans After Patient Tests Positive For Tuberculosis

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The University Drive campus of the Pittsburgh VA Health System is one of two locations in our area where a patient, recently diagnosed with Tuberculosis, has visited.

The second location was the Beaver campus.

Dr. Brooke Decker, of the VA, said hundreds of patients were notified.

"We have sent out more than 400 letters to people we have identified as people who may have been at the same place, at the same time as this individual," said Dr. Decker.

Tuberculosis is described as an infectious disease, rarely seen in the United States.

The infected patient was diagnosed on Nov. 17 and is currently being treated with antibiotics. It is a bacterial infection that most often affects the lungs. But, according to Dr. Decker, risks are slim.

"The risk is extremely low. I can't tell you it's zero because there is always the risk of that one unlucky person, so we want to make sure that we catch them and treat them," Dr. Decker says.

If you receive a letter from the VA Healthcare System, they'd like to come in for a skin test, that takes a few days to get the results, to determine if you've actually been exposed.

Doctors say the treatment for tuberculosis includes antibiotics, which would start immediately if exposure is confirmed.

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