TB reappears

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Tuberculosis is hitting the tiny hamlet of Buffalo Lake with as many as eight confirmed cases and up to 25 infections of the disease says a provincial health official.

The victims are all residents of the Lubicon Lake Indian band and have been transported to Edmonton's Aberhart Centre for infectious diseases. A medical team has been flown to Little Buffalo and Cadotte Lake areas and testing of residents continues this week, says Dr. John Waters, director of communicable disease control for Alberta.

"There had been cases of whooping cough so many people thought they were still suffering from that. In fact they had TB," he said.

There were approximately 200 cases of the disease in Alberta last year and Native people constitute a large percentage of this figure says Waters.

The disease is treatable, stressed Waters, who said victims must take medication for up to 18 months after being diagnosed.