More than 260 people have been identified as possible close contacts of a person with a confirmed case of tuberculosis at Seventy-First High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and those contacts have been told to get screened. The Cumberland County Department of Public Health says it will repeat skin testing for exposed people in about eight weeks, because a test done too soon after exposure can miss a new infection.
The case involves an individual at the school at 6764 Raeford Road. County health officials were notified on Sept. 11 and are investigating with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and Cumberland County Schools. Officials have not released any information about the person with TB.
For parents, the most important detail is who is not affected. Students, staff, and visitors who did not receive a direct notification are not currently considered close contacts, and the health department recommends no action for them.
Who Counts as a Close Contact
In its latest public update, the county said possible exposure is limited to a select group of people. Simply attending or working at Seventy-First High School does not mean a person was exposed.
Investigators decide who is a contact by looking at how much time people spent with the infected person, how close they were, and the setting where contact happened. TB usually spreads through the air during prolonged or repeated close contact with someone who has infectious TB of the lungs or throat. It does not spread through handshakes, shared food or drinks, touching surfaces, or casual contact.
Students identified as possible close contacts were sent home with letters. Employees identified as possible close contacts received direct notification from Cumberland County Schools Health Services, and a ParentLink message went out to the wider school community. The school remains open, and health officials have not recommended that anyone who was not notified stay home.
According to WRAL, state health officials said this is the sixth TB case in Cumberland County this year and the 120th statewide.
Skin Tests Now, Retesting in About Eight Weeks
Screening starts with a TB skin test or blood test. If a skin test is positive, the person is referred for a chest X-ray and further medical evaluation, WRAL reported.
A positive test shows TB infection, not necessarily active TB disease. Further evaluation determines whether the infection is inactive, called latent TB infection, or active disease. People with latent TB do not feel sick, have no symptoms, and cannot spread TB to others. Treatment may still be recommended to lower the chance that the infection becomes active later.
The county's update on repeat testing explains the second round. It can take several weeks after exposure for a TB test to detect a new infection, so a negative result now does not fully rule one out. That approach follows long-standing CDC contact investigation guidance, which calls for a second test eight to 10 weeks after the last exposure when the first result is negative.
Families should expect the second test around mid-November, depending on when a student's last exposure occurred. A student who tests negative once and skips the follow-up could leave an infection undetected.
Parents Question the Notification Timeline
The investigation has also raised questions about communication. Parents of Seventy-First students were notified on Wednesday, Sept. 16, five days after the county learned of the case, WRAL reported. Some students said they first heard about it through social media.
Martina Matthews, a parent, told ABC11 she learned of the case from her daughter rather than the school. She said her older mother is in daily contact with her granddaughter, which raised the stakes for her family. Matthews decided to keep her daughter home for the rest of the week, even though officials have not recommended that.
County officials said all identified close contacts had been notified by a public health nurse or Cumberland County Schools and that there is no known ongoing exposure. Officials have not fully explained the gap between the county's notice and the wider school message, although contact investigations often take days because investigators must first determine who shared time and space with the patient.
Dr. David Weber, a UNC professor of medicine and epidemiology, told WRAL that TB is becoming less common but still deserves attention. "It's still a disease to be concerned about," he said. He noted that infection depends on several factors, including the health of the person exposed.
Symptoms, Latent Infection, and Local Help
Active TB most often affects the lungs. Warning signs include a cough lasting more than three weeks, coughing up blood, fever, heavy night sweats that soak the sheets, unplanned weight loss, poor appetite, chest pain, and trouble breathing.
A close contact who develops these symptoms should contact a clinician or the health department promptly, even before the second test. Coughing up blood or significant difficulty breathing requires urgent care. People who were not notified and have no symptoms do not need testing because of this case.
Contacts with weakened immune systems or conditions such as diabetes should mention them during screening, since those factors can raise the risk that an infection becomes active disease.
Families with questions about testing or results can call the Cumberland County Department of Public Health at 910-433-3600 or visit the county health department website.
The situation calls for follow-through rather than alarm. Families who received a letter should complete both rounds of testing, and everyone else can continue normal routines while watching for official updates.
Key Questions Answered
What happened at Seventy-First High School? Cumberland County Public Health confirmed a TB case involving an individual at the Fayetteville school and was notified on Sept. 11. More than 260 possible close contacts have been identified.
Is my child a close contact? Only people who received a direct notification by letter, public health nurse, or school health services are considered close contacts. If you were not notified, no action is recommended.
What does screening involve? A TB skin or blood test. A positive skin test leads to a chest X-ray and further evaluation. The health department will repeat skin testing in about eight weeks.
Does a positive test mean someone has TB disease? No. A positive test shows infection, which is often latent. People with latent TB do not feel sick and cannot spread TB.
Is the school still open? Yes. Health officials have not recommended that students or staff who were not identified as contacts stay home.
Who can answer questions? The Cumberland County Department of Public Health at 910-433-3600.
