TUBERCULOSIS AND THE TB SKIN TEST

      You have been asked to get a TB skin test to apply for a particular program at school or for a job – Why?  The TB skin test is a way to find out if a person has Tuberculosis (often called TB) infection.  A small amount of testing material is placed just below the top layers of the skin on the forearm.  A health-care  worker needs to check your arm between 48 and 72 hours to see if a bump has developed. If the bump is a certain size the test is positive. The test will be invalid and have to be repeated if your arm is not evaluated within 72 hours.

      Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that usually attacks the lungs.  Tuberculosis is spread from person to person through the air.  When people with TB in their lungs or throat cough, laugh, sneeze, sing, or even talk, the germs that cause TB may spread into the air.  If another person breathes in these germs there is a chance that they will become infected with tuberculosis.

      It is important to understand that there is a difference between being infected with TB and having TB disease.  Someone who is infected with TB has TB germs in their body.  The body's defenses are protecting them from the germs and they are not sick.  Someone with TB disease is sick and can spread the disease to other people. 

      A person with TB infection will have no symptoms.  A person with TB disease may have any, all or none of the following symptoms: a cough that will not go away, feeling tired all the time, weight loss, loss of appetite, fever, coughing up blood, night sweats. 

     Anyone can get TB but for many reasons, some groups of people are at higher risk to get active TB disease.  The groups that are at high risk include: people with HIV; people in close contact with those known to be infected with TB; people whose immune systems are compromised from things like diabetes or cancer; foreign-born people from countries with high TB rates; people who work in nursing homes, prisons or hospitals; people who are malnourished; alcoholics and IV drug users.

  The GVSU Campus Health Center offers TB tests on a walk- in basis at the cost of $20.00. The office is located at 10383 42^nd Ave. on the corner of Pierce and 42^nd Ave. in Water Tower Place (near Papa John's). Office hours are Monday through Friday 9:00AM to 4:30PM.  Testing done on Thursdays will require the reading of the results to be done elsewhere due to the office being closed on the weekend.  Call the office at 331-2435 with questions.