Tuberculosis transmission in multiple correctional facilities--Kansas, 2002-2003.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a substantial health concern in correctional facilities; inmates and employees are at high risk, and TB outbreaks can lead to transmission in surrounding communities. The Advisory Council for the Elimination of Tuberculosis (ACET) recommends that all correctional facilities have a written TB infection-control plan (TBICP). In September 2002, after diagnosis of smear-positive pulmonary TB in a prison inmate, the Kansas TB Control Program, with assistance from CDC, initiated a 6-month contact investigation. This report summarizes the results of that investigation, which determined that, while symptomatic for TB, the inmate had resided in three different jails and a state prison, placing hundreds of employees and other inmates at risk for TB infection. The circumstances of this case underscore the need for effective TBICPs to be implemented by trained employees in jails and prisons and for establishment of mechanisms to facilitate information-sharing between correctional facilities and local and state health departments.