A third person had tested positive for tuberculosis in Vicksburg, said officials of the Mississippi Department of Health.

Dr. Mary Gayle Armstrong said Monday the third person is a child and that the positive test is unrelated to either of the two positive tests reported earlier in Vicksburg.

On Feb. 22, Armstrong confirmed a person at River Region Medical Center had produced a positive skin test for TB. Then on Feb. 28, she said a student at the Vicksburg campus of Hinds Community College also had a positive test for the disease.

Tuberculosis is a mycobacterial disease most often found in the lungs, but can be spread to other parts of the body.

Exposure to TB does not always mean the illness will result. The disease often remains latent, causing no symptoms. If the person’s immune system becomes weakened through illness, age or other causes, the disease can become active.

After the first two positive skin tests were found, more testing followed. The number of people tested at the hospital was not released, but about 60 students and two teachers at the Hinds campus were tested.

Armstrong said once a person has been exposed to TB, a positive skin test can result but does not indicate the disease will advance.

&#8220A positive skin test alone does not indicate a person has active or contagious TB, only that they have been exposed to TB at some time,” Armstrong said.

In her statement released Monday, Armstrong said testing of people is continuing and the health department is in the process of contacting the people who did not show up to have their skin tests read so they can be retested.

&#8220This situation continues to be low risk,” she said.

As for the third positive test, Armstrong said it is totally unrelated to either of the other two positive skin tests.

&#8220This investigation is ongoing and is believed to be extremely low risk as well,” she said.