The ability of current overseas screening to detect tuberculosis among immigrants with abnormal chest radiographs is low. Improved diagnostic methods, enhanced screening measures, and postmigration follow-up are essential to control tuberculosis among immigrants and support US and global tuberculosis elimination.
Objective. Use of tuberculin skin tests (TSTs) and interferon gamma release assays (IGRAs) as part of tuberculosis (TB) screening among immigrants from high TB-burden countries has not been fully evaluated. Methods. Prevalence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection (MTBI) based on TST, or the QuantiFERON-TB Gold test (QFT-G), was determined among immigrant applicants in Vietnam bound for the United States (US); factors associated with test results and discordance were assessed; predictive values of TST and QFT-G for identifying chest radiographs (CXRs) consistent with TB were calculated. Results. Of 1,246 immigrant visa applicants studied, 57.9% were TST positive, 28.3% were QFT-G positive, and test agreement was 59.4%. Increasing age was associated with positive TST results, positive QFT-G results, TST-positive but QFT-G-negative discordance, and abnormal CXRs consistent with TB. Positive predictive values of TST and QFT-G for an abnormal CXR were 25.9% and 25.6%, respectively. Conclusion. The estimated prevalence of MTBI among US-bound visa applicants in Vietnam based on TST was twice that based on QFT-G, and 14 times higher than a TST-based estimate of MTBI prevalence reported for the general US population in 2000. QFT-G was not better than TST at predicting abnormal CXRs consistent with TB.
Pharmacists play a variety of roles in supporting the health care system. The COVID-19 epidemic originated in China and has spread to many countries around the world. In the context of the current COVID-19, additional support from pharmacists' human resources will be needed in the future. This research survey explores the knowledge, attitude, and prevention strategies in Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research aims to collect data from Vietnamese students in Ho Chi Minh City's pharmacy sector. The following objectives are to study the awareness of the COVID-19 virus, acts of prevention, risk awareness, and compliance measures to prevent further outbreaks of COVID -19 in Ho Chi Minh City. This cross-sectional survey used anonymous questionnaires that investigated the knowledge, attitudes, and prevention of Vietnamese students' COVID-19 epidemic. The unit of analysis consists of undergraduate pharmacy students from the first year to the last year. Data were collected during April and May 2020. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS. Pharmacy students in this study were 80% female. The main source of information for pharmacy students to access information about COVID-19 epidemics from websites of the health authorities (31.7%) and news from television and newspapers (40.2 %). The Cronbach alpha coefficients of the three main factors in this study were knowledge (0.74), attitude (0.85), and prevention of COVID-19 (0.89), which show acceptable internal consistency. This research has shown no statistically significant difference between pharmacy students' demographics in three KAP variables, and there is a strong positive correlation between the three factors. It shows the unity and social solidarity of the study participants towards COVID-19. This study shows that pharmacy students have an epidemic concern about COVID-19 today. Pharmacy student's attention knowledge, attitude and preventive COVID-19. Sources of information from television and newspapers are important and updated regularly and accurately about COVID-19 to achieve effectiveness, helping pharmacy students to be aware of COVID- 19 pandemic in the country and the world.
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