Tuberculosis in the DR

Fiesta Mama

Bronze
Jan 28, 2004
772
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I am hoping someone can please shed some light on this for me. My parents recently visited the DR with me. Soon after our vacation my mother had her yearly physical. My mother's doctor always does a test for exposure to TB and this year her test came back positive. She does not actually have TB but has somehow come into contact with it sometime in the last year since her last physical and is now a "carrier". She now has to take medication for six months to make sure she will never become contagious or the TB will never manifest itself into full blown TB. I have been to the DR many many times and have never been tested (although I have an appointment for next week). While the form of TB she has been exposed to will not and does not present a health risk, her doctor and my family are wondering if she was somehow exposed to TB while in the DR. Has anyone heard of this ever happening there? If so, what types of precautionary measures can people take?

P.S. - Are Dominicans vacinated for TB?
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
4,837
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TB is everywhere - we have TB cases in Toronto - the poorer and closer together people are, the higher the risk. There is no really suitable vaccine for TB, other than a version used by health care workers - it is not a "routine" vaccination like when we were kids, e.g. polio and the like.
 

Fiesta Mama

Bronze
Jan 28, 2004
772
60
0
Thank you both for your replies. I guess what I am more interested in is... are there many cases of TB in the DR? Is this something common?