No infections in TB case of Andrew Speaker

ATLANTA, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Officials said none of the airline passengers in contact with an Atlanta man infected with a virulent strain of tuberculosis faced risk of infection.

Health officials from the United States and Canada said test results of U.S. and Canadian passengers who came in contact with Andrew Speaker tested negative for tuberculosis, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said Wednesday.

Speaker caused an international frenzy in May when U.S. officials issued a federal isolation order confining Speaker to hospital to avoid an outbreak of a drug resistant strain of TB.

He had been traveling to Greece from the United States for his wedding and the length of the flight potentially exposed other passengers to TB.

"We are six months out now from the time of exposure and there still continues to be no evidence of transmission," said Dr. Tom Wong, with the Public Health Agency of Canada.

"I hope that brings a sense of peace and closure for the people who may have been concerned," Speaker said.