We can all agree this person acted in irresponsible manner once he learned of the severity of his infection. What I have not heard much of is the CDC attempt to tract down the source of his infection. While speculation of his father-in-law’s seemingly suspicious connection with CDC-TB research abounds, there has been little speculation on other sources of the infection.

Based upon the apparent (at least for now) lack of transmission to others, even with persons that he has fairly close contact with, begs the question from whom did he contact this virulent strain of TB? Is there an individual or more then one out there who is unknowingly (or knowingly) spreading this strain of TB and whom else will soon be infected? Just as with other epidemiological studies of bacterial (or viral) infections, various strains have distinct genetic markers that allow tracking. Does the strain he is infected with point to any particular geographical source? The media and we may be so focused on his irresponsibility that the real danger lays in his source of infection and what is or is not being done to tract down that source.

Pete