More than 70 Niagara children younger than five received tuberculosis screening and follow-up after a daycare exposure this summer, Niagara Health reported October 22.

The account describes an earlier coordinated response, rather than announcing a new exposure. The number screened does not establish how many children developed TB.

Niagara and Hamilton teams shared the work

Niagara Health, regional public health and McMaster Children’s Hospital organized outpatient assessments, skin testing and chest imaging.

Niagara Health’s pediatric clinic assessed about 40 children considered lower risk. McMaster followed 25 children, with specialized care available when needed. Those figures are not presented as a complete breakdown of every child screened.

The hospital says the teams reviewed cases together weekly. McMaster specialists also advised local pediatricians and reviewed some images remotely, reducing the need for families to travel to Hamilton.

Source: Niagara Health’s October 22 report.

Editorial illustration of pediatric screening; not a patient photograph.