300 babies exposed to tuberculosis -adelaide

Women's and Children's Hospital babies exposed to TB

Article from: TORY SHEPHERD, HEALTH REPORTER

December 09, 2008 03:10pm

UPDATED: About 300 babies have been exposed to tuberculosis from an infected doctor at the Women's and Children's Hospital.

SA Health says about 300 children in the Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit and the Special Care Baby Unit may have come into "close and prolonged contact" with the doctor between September 28 and November 28 this year.

About 75 of these children are too young to diagnose, and will be treated with antibiotics to minimise the chances of infection.

Tests for TB are ineffective in babies under three months of age.

The overseas-born doctor is on sick leave, but hospital authorities expect him to return to work after he is cured.

SA Health chief medical officer Professor Paddy Phillips said the risk of transmission was low.

"However, as a precautionary measure, those people identified as possible contacts are being offered screening and some are being offered preventative antibiotics," he said.

Was your child treated at the hospital during this time? Contact our newsdesk on 08 8206 2300 or email [email protected]

The doctor was screened for TB by immigration authorities when he arrived in Australia in March this year. His chest X-ray found no trace of TB - but a routine follow-up test by SA Health last week returned a positive result.

However, Professor Phillips said the risk of infection was assessed as being at the low end of the spectrum.

"Those babies in the NICU will be offered a program of preventative antibiotics as a precaution until they reach three months and are able to undergo a screening test, with a further precautionary test offered at six months," he said.

Other babies treated in the SCBU will be offered a screening test when they reach three and six months of age.

"Doctors from the Women's and Children's Hospital have been contacting the families today."

Older children and other visitors to the hospital are not believed to be at risk of infection.

There were 59 new cases of TB diagnosed in South Australia last year. About 1000 new cases are detected in Australia each year.

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24774458-5006301,00.html