Historical risks of tuberculin skin test conversion among non‐physician staff at a large urban hospital

Abstract

Background Nosocomial transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis among workers at a 1000‐bed inner‐city hospital led to an extensive evaluation of this risk among workers with potential exposure to TB patients or laboratory specimens. Methods Retrospective cohort study to determine the incidence and risk of tuberculin skin test (TST) conversions among workers employed 1/1/90 to 9/30/92. Results Personal, community, and occupational risk factors were evaluated in 2,362 workers with potential M. tuberculosis exposure and 886 workers with no known exposure. The 33‐month cumulative rate of TST conversion was 5.8% for potentially exposed workers and 2.0% for controls (RR 3.6; 95% CI; 2.2–5.8). Among workers with potential M. tuberculosis exposure, statistically significantly elevated risks were found for nurses, laboratory technicians, pharmacy workers, phlebotomists, housekeepers, clerks, emergency room workers, and emergency responders. Conclusions Workers with patient contact and those employed in certain occupational groups were at increased risk for occupational M. tuberculosis infection. Am. J. Ind. Med. 42:228–235, 2002. Published 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Do nurses have a different physical health profile? A systematic review of experimental and observational studies on nurses’ physical health

“…They were conducted in several countries and published between 1991–2006. From the results presented, it was possible to conclude from the studies from Babus (1997), Boudreau et al (1997), Harries et al (1997), Miller et al (2002) and Dooley et al (1992) that there was an increased risk of TB for nurses working in hospitals, pulmonary units, medicine, TB or HIV wards compared with nurses working in other settings.…”

Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry Identification of Mycobacteria in Routine Clinical Practice

“…M. tuberculosis complex mycobacteria are harmful organisms that have previously been found to be responsible for cases of laboratory-acquired tuberculosis in laboratory staff [39]. M. tuberculosis species are Biosafety Level 3 organisms that must be inactivated prior to manipulation outside a biological safety cabinet to avoid potentially exposing the laboratory staff to contamination [39], [40]. Because the tuberculous nature of AFB organisms cannot be determined by microscopic observation, we suggest that systematic inactivation of AFB organisms is warranted prior to their identification by MALDI-TOF MS.…”

Dying for work: The magnitude of US mortality from selected causes of death associated with occupation

“…An increased risk of TB infection and/or active disease has been recognized among: occupations associated with silica exposure and silicosis, which increases susceptibility to TB (e.g., sandblasters and foundry workers); occupations associated with transmission of TB through exposure to active cases (e.g., health care workers, correctional facility workers, funeral directors) [Markowitz, 1994;CDC, 1995;McKenna et al, 1996;Boudreau et al, 1997;Steenland et al, 1997b;Miller et al, 2002], and occupations attracting individuals from segments of the general population at high risk of TB (e.g., migrant farm workers) [Bowden and McDiarmid, 1994].…”