Tuberculosis

Four nationally prioritized strategies exist to prevent and control TB in the United States, as follows: 

1. Promptly detect and report persons who have contracted TB disease.
2. Protect close contacts of patients with contagious TB. 
3. Take concerted action to prevent TB among the substantial population of U.S. residents with LTBI.
4. Reduce the rising burden of TB from recent transmission of M. tuberculosis by identifying settings at high risk for transmission and applying effective infection-control measures to reduce the risk.

The Florida Department of Health in Collier County prioritizes public health resources to ensure services are available to carry out these functions, by order of priority. Our efforts are heavily concentrated on the first two strategies. Services beyond that are further prioritized and based on available resources. Currently treatment for Latent TB Infection (LTBI) is only available for individuals with medical conditions that present a higher risk for accelerated progression to TB disease if left untreated. Individuals who do not have known recent exposure or one of the immune-compromising medical conditions listed below are encouraged to seek and complete a curative course of treatment from their Primary Care Provider (PCP) or Community Health Clinic (CHC).

The following services are offered at this time, based on available resources.

Services

• Case Management and supervision of treatment (D.O.T) provided to individuals with presumptive or confirmed active TB disease.
• Contact Investigation and evaluation of contacts with prolonged exposure to lab-confirmed pulmonary or laryngeal TB cases or other known exposure aerosolized potentially infectious secretions from a lab-confirmed case with pulmonary or extra-pulmonary TB, during medical procedures.
• Treatment of latent TB infection (LTBI) in the following high-risk populations:
  • Those with known recent exposure (i.e., within the last 2 years)
  • Those with immune-compromising medical conditions
• Educational Presentations
• Clinical guidance or other expert medical consultation services.
• Risk Screening and testing for other targeted high-risk populations may be provided depending on available resources.

*Routine testing for low-risk individuals may be offered through our Adult Health Clinic requiring clearance for work, school, or employment.