AJIC: American Journal of Infection Control
Volume 37, Issue 8 , Pages 668-673 , October 2009

Protecting health care workers from tuberculosis: A 10-year experience

  • Sharon F. Welbel, MD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Medicine/Infectious Disease, Rush Medical College, and John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, Chicago, IL
    • Corresponding Author InformationAddress correspondence to Sharon F. Welbel, MD, Department of Medicine, John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, 1901 W. Harrison St., Chicago, IL 60612.
    • ,
  • Audrey L. French, MD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Medicine/Infectious Disease, Rush Medical College, and John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, Chicago, IL
    • ,
  • Patricia Bush, MD

      Affiliations

    • Employee Health Service, John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, Chicago, IL
    • ,
  • Delia DeGuzman, RN

      Affiliations

    • Department of Infection Control, John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, Chicago, IL
    • ,
  • Robert A. Weinstein, MD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Medicine/Infectious Disease, Rush Medical College, and John H Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, Chicago, IL

References 

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  2. Israel HL, Hetherington HW, Ord JG. A study of tuberculosis among students of nursing. JAMA. 1941;117:839–844
  3. CDC. Guidelines for prevention of TB transmission in hospital. Atlanta: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service. Atlanta, GA: CDC DHHS publication No. CDC 82-8371; 1982;
  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Guidelines for preventing the transmission of tuberculosis in health-care setting, with special focus on HIV-related issues. MMWR. 1990;39(RR-17):1–29
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  7. Zaza S, Blumberg HM, Beck-Sague C, Haas WH, Woodley CL, Pnneda M, et al. Nosocomial transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: role of health care workers in outbreak propagation. J Infect Dis. 1995;172:1542–1549
  8. Pearson ML, Jereb JA, Frieden TR, Crawford JT, Davis BJ, Dooley SW, et al. Nosocomial transmission of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis: a risk to patients and health care workers. Ann Intern Med. 1992;117:191–196
  9. Beck-Sague C, Dooley SW, Huton MD, Otten J, Breeden A, Crawford JT, et al. Hospital outbreak of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection: factors in transmission to staff and HIV-infected patients. JAMA. 1992;268:1280–1286
  10. Pierce JR, Sims SL, Holman GH. Transmission of tuberculosis to hospital workers by a patient with AIDS. Chest. 1992;101:581–582
  11. Edlin BR, Tokars JI, Grieco MH, Crawford JT, Williams J, Sordillo EM, et al. An outbreak of multidrug resistant tuberculosis among hospitalized patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. N Engl J Med. 1992;326:1514–1521
  12. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Guidelines for preventing the transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in health-care settings, 2005. MMWR. 2005;54(RR-17):1–141
  13. Federal Registers occupational exposure to tuberculosis; proposed rule; termination of rulemaking respiratory protection for M tuberculosis; final rule; revocation-68:75767–75775). Federal Register (2003).
  14. Federal Registers respiratory protection for M tuberculosis-68:75776–75780. Federal Register (2003).
  15. Cocchiarella LA, Cohen RA, Conroy L, Wurtz G, et al. Positive tuberculin skin test reactions among house staff at a public hospital in the era of resurgent tuberculosis. Am J Infect Control. 1996;24:7–12
  16. CDC. Screening for tuberculosis and tuberculous infection in high-risk populations and the use of preventive therapy for tuberculous infection in the United States: recommendations of the Advisory Committee for Elimination of Tuberculosis. MMWR. 1990;39(RR-8):12
  17. Welbel S, Bush P, Weinstein R. Defining the tuberculosis infection rate in employees at a large urban hospital. Program and abstracts of the American Thoracic Society International Conference, May 17-21, 1997, San Francisco.
  18. Welbel S, de Guzman D, Braswell K, Van Voorhis J, Bush P, Weinstein R. Pulmonary tuberculosis at an urban hospital: who gets missed? Program and abstracts of the 34th Infectious Diseases Society of America, 1996, New Orleans.
  19. EM air and waste management association's magazine for environmental managers, Pittsburgh, PA, October 2000:22–29.
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  22. Maloney SA, Pearson ML, Gordon MT, Castillo RD, Boyle JF, Jarvis WR. Efficacy of control measures in preventing nosocomial transmission of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis to patients and health care workers. Ann Intern Med. 1995;122:90–95
  23. Menzies D, Fanning A, Yuan L, Fitzgerald J. The Canadian Collaborative Group in Nosocomial Transmission of TB. Hospital ventilation and risk for tuberculous infection in Canadian health care workers. Ann Intern Med. 2000;133:779–789
  24. Tokars J, McKinley G, Otten J, Woodley C, Gordillo EM, Caldwell J, et al. Use of efficacy of tuberculosis infection control practices at hospitals with previous outbreaks of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2001;22:449–455
  25. Bass JB. The tuberculin skin test. In:  Field MJ editors. Tuberculosis in the workplace. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2001;p. 179–188
  26. Sepkowitz KA, Feldman J, Louther J, Rivera P, Villa N, DeHovitz J. Benefit of two-step PPD testing of new employees at a New York City hospital. Am J Infect Control. 1997;25:283–286
  27. Horowitz HW, Luciano BB, Kadel JR, Wormser BP. Tuberculin skin test conversion in hospital employees vaccinated with bacilli Calmette-Guerin: recent Mycobactrium tuberculosis infection or booster effect?. Am J Infect Control. 1995;23:181–187
  28. Menzies D. Interpretation of repeated tuberculin tests: boosting conversion and reversion. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1999;159:15–21
  29. Coffey CC, Lawrence RB, Campbell DL, Zhuang Z, Calvert CA, Jensen PA. Fitting Characteristics of eighteen N95 filtering face piece respirators. J Occup Environ Hyg. 2004;1:262–271
  30. Fridkin SK, Manangan L, Bolyard E. SHEA-CDC TB survey, part 11: efficacy of TB infection control programs at member hospitals, 1992. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 1995;16:135–140

 Conflicts of interest: None to report.

PII: S0196-6553(09)00082-0

doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2009.01.004

AJIC: American Journal of Infection Control
Volume 37, Issue 8 , Pages 668-673 , October 2009

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