The TB skin test can be falsely negative (e.g., show no reaction) in students who may have been infected recently (in the past several weeks). The TB germ grows slowly and your body’s immune system takes time to react to it. Therefore, when screening students who have been recently exposed to a person with active TB, you need to repeat the TB skin test 10 weeks later to be sure that you have not been infected with TB.

The TB skin test uses a small amount of purified protein derivative (PPD), which is a substance that your body’s immune system will respond to by creating a bump at the skin test site when you have TB.

A small amount of PPD is injected with a small needle just under the skin on the forearm. This area of the arm is checked 2-3 days after the injection to see if a bump develops. A nurse or physician needs to measure the size of the bump to see if you have a positive skin test. A positive skin test does NOT mean that a person has active TB, but usually means that a person has been exposed to TB at some point in the past. The skin test may be repeated twice in some groups (e.g.

When a student is transferring within the district, the parent/guardian should ask the school nurse. They will be asked to fill out a records request, and then the nurse can print out the needed information. Administrative Assistants and School Secretaries also have the ability to print these records. For a student who has graduated from or left the district, a request needs to be made to the Student Records department located on Hillcrest Drive next to West High School.

We use a two-step TB test. On the first day, the test is delivered to your forearm; 48 hours later a nurse "reads" the results of your skin test. The visits are brief, but you must be sure to schedule them so that you can return 48 hours later for a reading.

A positive TB test means that someone has been exposed to the TB germ and follow up evaluation is needed. Once a positive TB test has been confirmed to be truly positive, there is no point in having repeat TB tests in the future. They will not hurt you, or cause disease, but will always continue to be positive. BCG vaccine (Bacille Calmette-Guerin) used in countries where TB is endemic, can decrease the severity of TB in children but will not prevent TB infection.

The person with a positive TB skin test who has no signs or symptoms of TB cannot give the TB germ to anyone else. The positive TB skin test indicates only that the person may have been exposed to the TB germ. It does not mean that they have TB disease. The Health Department is notified about all persons suspected of having or diagnosed with active TB disease which can be passed on to another person.

A positive skin test means that the germ that causes TB has caused an infection in your body. About 25,000 of the 250,000 people in Santa Cruz County have a positive skin test. You will need to get another test, a chest X-ray, to see if you are one of the 20 people out the 25,000 whose infection is advanced and who has TB disease. Only the few who have TB disease are contagious to others, and with treatment they can be cured and not spread the disease.

No. Students entering at any grade level from any other California school (public, private, or parochial) are exempt from the requirement even if they never received a skin test.

A positive skin test means that a person has been infected with TB germs sometime during that person's life. It does not indicate that a person is contagious or symptomatic.

The advice for most people is to get a tuberculin test if you have symptoms or if you are living in close contact or have otherwise been in close contact with someone who recently came down with TB disease. (Some people get skin tests because of their jobs, in a school or hospital, for example, to make sure they will not infect others if they have TB.

T.B. tests are good for 2 years, unless you have traveled out of the country; then you need a new one. No ? we cannot accept that. We must have a document from your physician's office that states they have seen your test and what the results are. We want a photocopy (NOT the original!) of this document. It is your responsibility to keep the original for future use. We will not provide you with photocopies of your TB test results at any time.

Answer : The RAST and skin testing methods only measure IgE mediated reactions. Experience has shown that an IgE allergy to food is immediate and obvious. By simply taking a good history these foods can be identified.