BackgroundTB transmission in healthcare facilities is an important public health problem, especially in the often-overcrowded settings of HIV treatment scale-up. The problem is compounded by the emergence of drug resistant TB. Natural ventilation is a low-cost environmental control measure for TB infection control where climate permits that is suited to many different areas in healthcare facilities. There are no published data on the effect of simple structural modifications to existing hospital infrastructure to improve natural ventilation and reduce the risk of nosocomial TB transmission.The purpose of this study was to measure the effect of simple architectural modifications to existing hospital waiting and consulting rooms in a low resource setting on (a) improving natural ventilation and (b) reducing modelled TB transmission risk.MethodsRoom ventilation was measured pre- and post-modification using a carbon dioxide tracer-gas technique in four waiting rooms and two consulting rooms in two hospitals in Lima, Peru. Modifications included additional windows for cross-ventilation (n = 2 rooms); removing glass from unopenable windows (n = 2); creation of an open skylight (n = 1); re-building a waiting-room in the open air (n = 1). Changes in TB transmission risk for waiting patients, or healthcare workers in consulting rooms, were estimated using mathematical modelling.ResultsAs a result of the infrastructure modifications, room ventilation in the four waiting rooms increased from mean 5.5 to 15; 11 to 16; 10 to 17; and 9 to 66 air-changes/hour respectively; and in the two consulting rooms from mean 3.6 to 17; and 2.7 to 12 air-changes/hour respectively. There was a median 72% reduction (inter-quartile range 51–82%) in calculated TB transmission risk for healthcare workers or waiting patients. The modifications cost

RESUMENEl objetivo del estudio fue determinar la frecuencia y características de la dislipidemia en pacientes con VIH en terapia antirretroviral de gran actividad (TARGA) en un hospital público peruano. Se realizó un estudio transversal en pacientes que tuvieran un perfil lipídico completo luego de recibir al menos seis meses de TARGA. La dislipidemia se definió según los criterios NCEP-ATP III. Se revisaron 2975 historias clínicas, 538 (18.1%) fueron incluidas en el análisis. La frecuencia de dislipidemia fue 74.7%. Los esquemas de TARGA que incluían inhibidores de la proteasa (IP) (OR 1.22; IC95% 1,11-1,34) y la edad mayor de 40 años (OR 1.17; IC95% 1,06-1,29) mostraron asociación con dislipidemia, ajustado por carga viral, nivel de células CD4 y sexo. En conclusión, la dislipidemia fue muy frecuente en la muestra estudiada y estuvo asociada principalmente al uso de IP. Es necesario promover el control de la dislipidemia como parte de la atención integral del paciente con infección por VIH. Palabras clave: Dislipidemias; VIH; Terapia antirretroviral altamente activa (fuente: DeCS BIREME). HIGH FREQUENCY OF DYSLIPIDEMIA IN HIV-INFECTED PATIENTS IN A PERUVIAN PUBLIC HOSPITAL ABSTRACTThe objective of the study was to determine the frequency and characteristics of dyslipidemia in patients with HIV in highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in a Peruvian public hospital. A cross-sectional study was carried out in patients with complete lipid profile after receiving at least six months of HAART. Dyslipidemia was defined according to the criteria of the NCEP-ATP III. We reviewed 2 975 clinical histories, and included 538 (18.1%) in the analysis. The frequency of dyslipidemia was 74.7%. HAART regimens which include protease inhibitors (PI) (odds ratio [OR]: 1.22; confidence interval at 95% [CI 95%]: 1.11-1.33) and to be older than 40 years (OR: 1.17; CI 95%: 1.05-1.28) were associated with dyslipidemia, adjusted by viral load, CD4 lymphocyte level and gender. In conclusion, dyslipidemia was very common in our sample and was mainly associated with the use of PI. It is necessary to promote the dyslipidemia control as part of the comprehensive care of the patient with HIV.

Hospital infection control measures are crucial to tuberculosis (TB) control strategies within settings caring for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–positive patients, as these patients are at heightened risk of developing TB. Pyrazinamide (PZA) is a potent drug that effectively sterilizes persistent Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacilli. However, PZA resistance associated with mutations in the nicotinamidase/pyrazinamidase coding gene, pncA, is increasing. A total of 794 patient isolates obtained from four sites in Lima, Peru, underwent spoligotyping and drug resistance testing. In one of these sites, the HIV unit of Hospital Dos de Mayo (HDM), an isolation ward for HIV/TB coinfected patients opened during the study as an infection control intervention: circulating genotypes and drug resistance pre- and postintervention were compared. All other sites cared for HIV-negative outpatients: genotypes and drug resistance rates from these sites were compared with those from HDM. HDM patients showed high concordance between multidrug resistance, PZA resistance according to the Wayne method, the two most common genotypes (spoligotype international type [SIT] 42 of the Latino American-Mediterranean (LAM)-9 clade and SIT 53 of the T1 clade), and the two most common pncA mutations (G145A and A403C). These associations were absent among community isolates. The infection control intervention was associated with 58–92% reductions in TB caused by SIT 42 or SIT 53 genotypes (odds ratio [OR] = 0.420, P = 0.003); multidrug-resistant TB (OR = 0.349, P < 0.001); and PZA-resistant TB (OR = 0.076, P < 0.001). In conclusion, pncA mutation typing, with resistance testing and spoligotyping, was useful in identifying a nosocomial TB outbreak and demonstrating its resolution after implementation of infection control measures.