Seroprevalence of varicella antibodies in healthcare workers and health sciences students

Juanes, J.R. de; Gil, Á.; San-Martı́n, M.; González, Antonio; Esteban, Jesús; Codes, A. García de

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2004.10.003

Cited by 31 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Previous studies have shown that most 10-y-old children with negative or unknown history of varicella are immune [8]. In particular, our results are consistent with those of previous studies which showed that PPV ranged from 88% to 95% and that NPV ranged from 17% to 39% [9,10]; . The attack rate, which was slightly higher than 20%, was lower than the rates reported among household contacts, yet fell within the range of attack rates for outbreaks in other institutional settings [1].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Epidemiological investigation of a varicella outbreak in an Italian prison

Valdarchi

Farchi

Dorrucci

et al. 2008

Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases

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Five cases of varicella occurred in a women's prison in Rome. A serosurvey conducted in the prison found that 14.5% of the inmates were susceptible. The sensitivity and positive predictive value of a history of varicella were high, whereas specificity was rather low. The attack rate among susceptible inmates was approximately 22%. Preventive measures probably contributed to reduce infection spread.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Epidemiological investigation of a varicella outbreak in an Italian prison

Valdarchi

Farchi

Dorrucci

et al. 2008

Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases

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“…Errors introduced by self-reported history include the misclassification of the vaccine received, particularly hepatitis A and B vaccine [35] and underestimation of the number of vaccines received. Other surveys have found that respondents report vaccines for non-vaccine preventable diseases such as hepatitis C and malaria, indicating a poor knowledge of their vaccination history [36] and other studies have shown wide differences between perceived vaccination status and vaccination certificates or blood antibody levels in travelers and other population groups [7,37-39]. Without serological testing it is difficult to ascertain if those who visited a medical professional prior to travel were up-to-date with their vaccinations, if they were vaccinated but could not recall the vaccines received or if their visits were a missed opportunity to vaccinate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A cross-sectional study of pre-travel health-seeking practices among travelers departing Sydney and Bangkok airports

et al. 2012

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BackgroundPre-travel health assessments aim to promote risk reduction through preventive measures and safe behavior, including ensuring travelers are up-to-date with their immunizations. However, studies assessing pre-travel health-seeking practices from a variety of medical and non-medical sources and vaccine uptake prior to travel to both developing and developed countries within the Asia-Pacific region are scarce.MethodsCross-sectional surveys were conducted between July and December 2007 to assess pre-travel health seeking practices, including advice from health professionals, health information from other sources and vaccine uptake, in a sample of travelers departing Sydney and Bangkok airports. A two-stage cluster sampling technique was used to ensure representativeness of travelers and travel destinations. Pre-travel health seeking practices were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire distributed at the check-in queues of departing flights. Logistic regression models were used to identify significant factors associated with seeking pre-travel health advice from a health professional, reported separately for Australian residents, residents of other Western countries and residents of countries in Asia.ResultsA total of 843 surveys were included in the final sample (Sydney 729, response rate 56%; Bangkok 114, response rate 60%). Overall, pre-travel health information from any source was sought by 415 (49%) respondents with 298 (35%) seeking pre-travel advice from a health professional, the majority through general practice. Receipt of a pre-travel vaccine was reported by 100 (12%) respondents. Significant factors associated with seeking pre-travel health advice from a health professional differed by region of residence. Asian travelers were less likely to report seeking pre-travel health advice and uptake of pre-travel vaccines than Australian or other Western travelers. Migrant Australians were less likely to report seeking pre-travel health advice than Australian-born travelers.ConclusionsThis study highlights differences in health-seeking practices including the uptake of pre-travel health advice by region of residence and country of birth. There is a public health need to identify strategies targeting these travel groups. This includes the promotion of affordable and accessible travel clinics in low resource countries as traveler numbers increase and travel health promotion targeting migrant groups in high resource countries. General practitioners should play a central role. Determining the most appropriate strategies for increasing pre-travel health preparation, particularly for vaccine preventable diseases in travelers is the next stage in advancing travel medicine research.

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“…[9][10][11] In our study population, it is important to guarantee adequate protection against the diseases studied due to the greater risk of workplace exposure.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%