The San Francisco Department of Public Health says it is investigating two cases of tuberculosis that are tied to the Crazy Horse strip club on mid-Market.
The health department confirmed to NBC Bay Area on Thursday that it is looking into two active cases of tuberculosis (TB) which it says are "associated with The Crazy Horse establishment in San Francisco."
The first confirmed case of TB was brought to the attention of the department in early October, and they did not say how the two cases might be related. The department began conducting contact tracing after learning about the initial case.
"These efforts are ongoing and at this time, the risk to the general public is low," the department said in a statement. "If this status changes, we will let the public know."
Dr. Abraar Karan, a member of the Infectious Diseases faculty at Stanford University, tells NBC Bay Area that TB is somewhat unique in being caused by an airborne bacteria.
"Spaces that are crowded with poor ventilation or where you have very close contact with someone that is contagious are going to be higher risk for transmission," Dr. Karan tells the station, adding that "the bacteria can hang around in the air long after someone is no longer in that space."
Transmission typically requires prolonged exposure to an infected individual with active case. Those who have latent TB often don't show symptoms and are less contagious.
UCSF infectious disease specialist Dr. Peter Chin-Hong cautioned that we shouldn't take these two cases as signs of an outbreak, and we still don't know if both cases were infections that occurred at the Crazy Horse, only that they are linked there.
Dr. Chin-Hong added that the contact-tracing process will likely involve multiple retesting of individuals who had contact with the infected persons, because TB "grows so slowly, eventually that test may turn positive if there was a true infection."
The Crazy Horse Gentlemen's Club has been operating next door to the Warfield Theater at 980 Market Street for 32 years, since 1994, and bills itself as "the premier destination for 18+, full nude adult entertainment in the San Francisco Bay Area."
It began life as a movie theater, as multiple buildings along mid-Market Street did, becoming the Crest Theater in the 1960s and 70s, and the Electric Theater in 1981, before The Crazy Horse took over.
The club is open seven nights a week, some nights until 4 am.
According to the Department of Public Health, SF typically sees 60 to 90 active cases of TB each year, and there were 68 cases in 2025 primarily among non-US-born residents.
