ELYRIA — About 35 parents showed up at Elyria High School on Thursday night to find out more about tuberculosis after it was announced that a student there had been diagnosed with the disease.

Maryann Manning, a registered nurse who is administrator of the Lorain County TB Clinic, reassured parents that it is safe for their children to attend school and that no special cleaning of the school is needed. Permission slips for their children to get a free TB skin test also were available.

Tuberculosis is an airborne disease, she explained, and does not survive on any surface. Click here for more info on TB.

The student, who was not identified, is doing well and is expected to completely recover, Manning said. He or she has not been on school grounds since the diagnosis, she added, and will not return until tests show he or she is no longer contagious.

Manning reinforced to parents that the chances of their children getting TB are slim.

“We don’t expect to find other cases,” she said.

All students and staff will have two rounds of a free TB skin test. The first round for students is Monday at 8 a.m. and Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. Students must return in 48 hours — 8 a.m. Wednesday for those who took the test Monday and 11:30 a.m. Thursday for those who took the test Tuesday. The test, Manning said, is quick and painless.

The second round of tests will be done in three months.

If a student tests positive for TB infection, that does not mean they will develop the TB disease. Anyone who tests positive for TB infection will get an X-ray and begin a 9-month course of medication, usually isoniazi.

Dr. Mustafa Eren, medical adviser for the Lorain County TB Clinic, said that tuberculosis is treatable and curable, especially if caught in the infection stage.

John Quinn asked about family of students getting tested. Manning said that, if someone is infected with TB but has not developed the disease, they are not contagious, so there’s no call yet to test the families.

“I’m feeling better about this,” he said. “They jumped on this quick and did a great job informing us.”

Contact Melissa Hebert at 329-7129 or mhebert@chroniclet.com.

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