" NYC TB cases down, up in immigrant areas Staff and agencies 21 March, 2007
3 minutes ago
NEW YORK - While new cases of active tuberculosis are on the decline in New York City, immigrant communities continue to be disproportionately affected, accounting for 70 percent of new cases, health officials said Wednesday.
The Health Department said 954 cases of TB were identified in 2006, down 3 percent from the previous year. Of that number, multi-drug resistant TB accounted for 21 cases, it said.
Of the city‘s five boroughs, Queens and Brooklyn, which have the largest number of foreign-born residents, had the highest number of TB cases, it said.
The Health Department also announced that it has started to use a new blood-based screening test for TB infection called QuantiFERON-TB Gold. The test has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is endorsed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Tuberculosis is preventable and curable. People with active TB can spread the infection through coughing, but not through sharing such objects as utensils or drinking glasses.
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