TB outbreak hits 30 schoolgirls

Thirty pupils have tested positive at the school

An outbreak of tuberculosis (TB) at a Birmingham school is being investigated, the BBC has learned.

Pupils at Birchfield Independent School for Girls were tested after a pupil and one of their relatives were diagnosed with the disease.

Health officials said 30 pupils at the school, which teaches an Islamic curriculum, had tested positive for TB.

The school, in Beacon Hill, Aston, confirmed the outbreak but has refused to comment further.

A pupil contracted TB last summer and was successfully treated, but another family member later became ill.

Antibiotic treatments

The decision to test pupils at the school was taken in February.

Dr Andrew Rouse, a consultant in public health, said there was no need for the public to be alarmed.

He said the patients were being treated at the Birmingham Chest Clinic and the Birmingham Children's Hospital.

The girls at the school who have the disease will undergo six months of antibiotic treatments.

Birchfield provides education for girls aged between 11 and 16.

Dr Keith Prowse, chairman of the British Lung Foundation said rates of TB are on the rise in the UK but the disease is normally curable with a course of antibiotics.

"It's vital that immediate action is taken to investigate the TB strain involved and isolate people affected if necessary.

"Drug resistant strains of TB are rising around the world but there have only been a very small number of cases in the UK so far."