Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
Volume 79, Issue -, Pages 26-33Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2018.11.010
Keywords
Tuberculosis; Latent tuberculosis infection; Healthcare workers
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [71640019]
- Zhejiang Major Science and Technology [Projects2014C03034]
- Zhejiang Social Science Project [19NDJC243YB]
- Zhejiang Provincial Medical Research Project [2016RCA007, 2015KYA052]
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Objectives: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at high risk of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), and the baseline prevalence of LTBI among frontline TB HCWs in southeastern China remains unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of LTBI among TB HCWs and to analyze factors associated with LTBI at both the individual and institutional level. Methods: Based on a cross-sectional study design, 31 out of 89 TB-designated hospitals in Zhejiang Province of China were selected. Information on TB infection control measures was collected through field visits to each of the selected hospitals. All TB HCWs from the selected hospitals were recruited to answer a questionnaire and to undergo LTBI testing by TB interferon gamma release assay. Univariate analyses and a generalized linear mixed model were applied to analyze factors associated with LTBI at both the individual and hospital level. Results: A total of 487 TB HCWs were recruited at the 31 TB-designated hospitals; 33.9% of them tested positive for LTBI. At the institutional level, a low TB epidemic level, regular infection control training for HCWs, and regular maintenance of ultraviolet disinfection equipment were found to be significantly associated with a lower LTBI rate among HCWs. At the individual level, alcohol use, a greater number of years working on TB, and a longer weekly duration of contact with TB patients were identified as associated factors for LTBI among HCWs. Conclusions: The LTBI rate among frontline TB HCWs was found to be high in southeastern China. Factors at the institutional and individual level could both affect the prevalence of LTBI among HCWs. (c) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
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