Nepali man with 'dangerous' TB nabbed on US border, held in medical isolation

A Nepali man infected with a rare multiple-drug-resistant tuberculosis was held on the US border in November, and is since then being kept in medical isolation.

According local reports, the man, whose identity has not been revealed, is the first person to cross the border and be held in detention while infected with one of the most severe types of drug-resistant tuberculosis known today.

The man was taken into custody by the US Border Patrol as he tried to cross the border illegally near McAllen, Texas, local reports said quoting Department of Homeland Security officials. He was soon transferred to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Los Fresnos, Texas, and put into "medical isolation" with suspected tuberculosis. He has now been moved to another detention facility, in Pearsall, Texas, with more medical staff.

XDR-TB, which the man has developed, is a particularly dangerous form of the disease that is resistant not only to the two most powerful TB drugs, but also a handful of second-line drugs. It is rare in the US: Only six cases were reported in 2011, according to reports. Nepalnews.com