FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) _ A northeastern Indiana county that’s home to Fort Wayne saw its tuberculosis cases soar last year to 16 cases, quadruple the number of cases reported in 2011.
The Journal Gazette reports that Allen County health department statistics show that the county’s tuberculosis cases had been on the decline for the past five years. Fort Wayne-Allen County health commissioner Dr. Deborah McMahan says the county’s TB cases hit an all-time low of four reported cases in 2011 before last year’s numbers spiked to 16.
TB is a bacterial disease that usually attacks the lungs and can be fatal if not treated properly. It affected a total of 100 Hoosiers and about 11,180 Americans in 2012.
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