Epidemiology of tuberculosis among healthcare personnel in New York City

Abstract

BACKGROUND: We have updated the epidemiology of tuberculosis (TB) among healthcare personnel (HCP) in New York City (NYC), USA, during a period of declining TB burden.METHODS: Using routinely collected Health Department data for NYC TB cases from 2001 to 2014, we conducted a retrospective descriptive analysis. P values were calculated using Pearson's χ2 or Fisher's exact test for categorical data; Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used to compare medians. We used the Cochran-Armitage test for trend and linear regression for trend analyses.RESULTS: HCP accounted for 6% of adults with TB throughout the study period and were more likely than other adults to be female (68% vs. 37%, P ≤ 0.0001), have extrapulmonary-only disease (31% vs. 23%, P ≤ 0.0001), have an isolate with multidrug resistance (4% vs. 2%, P = 0.0211), and report a previous history of latent TB infection (LTBI) (51% vs. 23%, P ≤ 0.0001). Compared to non-US-born HCP, US-born HCP were more likely to have HIV infection (18% vs. 8%, P = 0.0011) or a genotypically clustered isolate (67% vs. 37%, P ≤ 0.0001) and less likely to report history of prior LTBI (43% vs. 54%, P = 0.0128).CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to explore transmission and occupational risk among HCP. New approaches are needed to optimize completion of prophylaxis for HCP with LTBI.

Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Health Workers in Germany—A Retrospective Study on Progression Risk and Use of Preventive Therapy

“…Results from the USA and Canada regarding the use of TPT are inconsistent and range from 20 to 80% [ 16 , 17 , 18 ]. In our study, one-third of the participants underwent TPT.…”

Vaccination policies for healthcare personnel: Current challenges and future perspectives

“…According to the World Health Organization (WHO), at least 115,000 HCP have died globally to COVID-19 as of May 2021 [18] . Overall, HCP are at occupational risk for COVID-19, influenza, measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, pertussis, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, tuberculosis, and meningococcal disease [14] , [19] , [20] , [21] , [22] , [23] , [24] , [25] , [26] , [27] , [28] , [29] , [30] . Finally, influenza and other VPDs have a significant negative impact on individuals with comorbidities.…”