Communicable Disease
Local Health Departments are required by law to investigate and follow-up all suspected or confirmed communicable diseases or conditions. In North Carolina, there are 66 reportable diseases or conditions for which investigation and follow-up are required.
Investigation and follow-up includes:
- Identifying the source of the infection, if possible
- Implementing control measures to prevent the spread of infection
- Assuring adequate treatment of persons with infection to minimize spread
Tuberculosis
Testing for TB, required by many employers, is available at the Health Department by appointment. Testing is free for persons who are contacts to active TB cases, symptomatic, and/or HIV positive. For others, the cost is $14.00.
The Health Department also provides treatment and follow-up for persons with TB infection or disease. Included in the follow-up is contact tracing of persons identified as having been exposed to an infectious TB case. Medications to treat TB are provided at no charge. For more information on tuberculosis, including a link to the North Carolina TB Policy Manual, go to http://www.epi.state.nc.us/epi/tb/
Prevention
The diseases in BOLD are diseases that can largely be prevented through immunization. Many of the vaccines to prevent these diseases are available at the Health Department (see Immunizations).
Following immunizations, the most effective way to prevent transmission of communicable diseases is adequate handwashing.
Reportable diseases are:
| AIDS | Monkeypox |
| Anthrax* | Mumps |
| Botulism | NGU (other than lab-confirmed chlamydia) |
| Brucellosis | Pelvic inflammatory disease |
| Campylobacter | Plague |
| Cholera | Polio |
| Chlamydia | Psittacosis |
| Cryptosporidiosis | Q fever |
| Cyclosporiasis | Rabies (human) |
| Dengue | Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever |
| Diptheria | Rubella |
| E-coli shiga toxin-producing infection | Salmonellosis |
| Ehrlichiosis | SARS |
| Encephalitis (arboviral) | Shigellosis |
| Foodborne disease | Smallpox* |
| Gonorrhea | Staph Aureus reduced susceptibility to vancomycin |
| Hantavirus | Streptococcal infection; group A, invasive disease |
| Hemolytic uremic syndrome | Syphilis |
| Hemophilus influenza invasive disease | TB |
| Hepatitis A | Tetanus |
| Hepatitis B | Toxic shock syndrome |
| Hepatitis C, acute | Toxoplasmosis (congenital) |
| HIV | Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (CJD/vCJD) |
| Influenza death (< 18 year old) | Trichinosis |
| Legionellosis | Typhoid |
| Leprosy | Typhus |
| Leptospirosis | Tularemia |
| Listeriosis | Vaccinia* |
| Lyme disease | Vibrio infection |
| Lymphogranuloma Venereum | Viral hemorrhagic fever |
| Malaria | Yellow Fever |
| Measles | Whooping Cough (Pertussis) |
| Meningitis, pneumococcal | |
| Meningococcal disease |
*Vaccine use primarily restricted to military personnel
For more information on Communicable Diseases, go to the CDC website at www.cdc.gov or call the Orange County Health Department's Communicable Disease Nurses at 919-968-2022 or 919-245-2400.