This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com
More than a dozen in Yakima County are sick with tuberculosis, reported The Yakima Herald-Republic.
According to the Yakima Health District, there are 16 active cases of the disease in Yakima County. Compare that to 2023, when there were only two cases of tuberculosis in Yakima County, as shown by Washington State Department of Health (DOH) data.
“It’s a large number compared to what we normally would be managing,” Melissa Sixberry, director of disease control for the Yakima Health District, told The Yakima Herald-Republic.
The Yakima Herald-Republic added that, according to Yakima Health District spokesperson Stephanie Ruiz, agencies are working to test anyone who may have been exposed and that the first case in the county was confirmed in September, but not all active cases are linked to the same outbreak.
Seven cases are being monitored by the Yakima Health District, and nine are being monitored by Indian Health Services, the media outlet stated.
Symptoms of tuberculosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), include a bad cough that lasts three weeks, pain in the chest, or coughing up blood or phlegm from deep inside the lungs. Other symptoms could include weakness or fatigue, weight loss, no appetite, chills, fever, or sweating at night.
For more information on the disease, visit the DOH’s website.
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