13 contacts identified for tuberculosis patient who worked at a kebab shop
Epidemiologists at Latvia's Centre for Disease Prevention and Control have identified 13 people who had contact with a kebab shop worker in Riga diagnosed with tuberculosis. Their health will be monitored for two years.
Epidemiologists at Latvia's Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (SPKC) have identified 13 contact persons of a young man who worked at a kebab shop and has been diagnosed with tuberculosis. The man is in serious condition at the Centre of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases in Stopiņi, and the health of his colleagues and fellow students will be monitored for the next two years.
Who counts as a contact
A contact person is anyone who spent at least 40 hours with the patient within a month. In this case they are eight fellow students and five work and flat neighbours. According to SPKC epidemiologist Sigita Geida, people who worked with the patient also lived with him, so the circle of contacts is established. A letter about all 13 people has been sent to the tuberculosis and lung diseases outpatient centre. If symptoms appear, treatment will begin promptly.
Most of the contacts are not Latvian citizens, and they are worried. All of them have been in touch with medical staff. The man is Indian and has lived in Riga since last spring. The epidemiologist said it is hard to determine whether he fell ill in Latvia or arrived already infected, since signs can appear within two years. Līga Kukša, head of the centre's 7th department, explained that a case counts as imported if the illness is detected within two years of arrival.
Situation in the country
Every year 200 to 300 people in Latvia contract tuberculosis. This year 219 cases have been recorded, 16 of them foreigners. In recent years most cases among foreigners were found in Ukrainian citizens (30), followed by Indian (nine) and Vietnamese (six) citizens. Such cases are rare in the catering sector.
Food safety
Doctors noted that tuberculosis cannot be transmitted while preparing food, as it spreads through airborne droplets. The Food and Veterinary Service therefore does not plan an extraordinary inspection of the kebab shop. The check will follow the regular schedule, as catering businesses are inspected twice a year.
