Disease Prevention & Control

TUBERCULOSIS

Ensuring Effective & Timely Treatment

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has a Tuberculosis (TB) Prevention and Control Program, which collaborates with clinicians and local health departments throughout Minnesota to ensure that persons with TB receive effective and timely treatment and that contact investigations are performed to minimize the spread of TB.

About the Disease

TB is a serious disease caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. TB can attack any part of the body, but most often it affects the lungs. There are two phases of TB: latent TB infection and active TB disease. Both phases can be treated with medication. Only persons with active TB disease can spread TB germs to others. Blue Earth County Public Health collaborates with medical providers to provide TB monitoring and treatment.

Spreading TB

TB can spread when someone with active TB of the lungs or voice box coughs, yells, sneezes, or talks and others breathe in the bacteria. People are most likely to become infected with TB if they spend many hours in close contact with someone with TB disease. Note: Brief contact usually does not lead to infection. Blue Earth County Public Health provides contact investigations to identify, notify and evaluate those with known exposure to active TB disease.

For More Information

If you would like more details, you can find fact sheets by topic and/or in multiple languages at the Minnesota Department of Health TB Education and Training website or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Basic TB Facts website.

REFUGEE HEALTH

Screenings Available

Blue Earth County Public Health partners with the Minnesota Department of Health, private health care providers, and community organizations to offer each new refugee arrival a comprehensive screening, follow-up or referral and community-based health education. A referral must be received from the Minnesota Department of Health Refugee Health to be eligible for this service.