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Possible tuberculosis exposure at MacArthur High School
NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth • • health
Key Points:
- Dallas County Health and Human Services and Texas Department of State Health Services are investigating potential tuberculosis exposure at MacArthur High School in Irving and recommend TB testing for returning 10th- to 12th-grade students from the 2025–2026 school year as a precaution.
- The testing recommendation excludes incoming 9th-graders, new students, and those already tested during the 2025–2026 school year, with officials emphasizing the risk to the public remains low and no confirmed exposure or active TB cases.
- Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection primarily affecting the lungs but can impact other organs; it spreads through airborne particles when an infected person coughs or talks, especially in enclosed spaces.
- Symptoms of active TB include prolonged cough, chest pain, coughing up blood, fatigue, weight loss, fever, and night sweats, and untreated TB can be fatal.
- The CDC estimates up to 13 million people in the US have latent TB, with about 10% potentially developing active TB, and there were 9,633 reported TB cases nationwide in 2023.
