The risk of occupational tuberculosis in Serbian health care workers. Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2009 May;13(5):640-4
Date
04/23/2009Pubmed ID
19383199Scopus ID
2-s2.0-67649510132 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 8 CitationsAbstract
SETTING: Health care workers in the Clinical Center of Serbia.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate tuberculosis (TB) incidence by job category comparing the rates of TB in health care workers (HCWs) working in pulmonary departments, other (non-pulmonary) departments, and in the general population in Serbia.
DESIGN: Prospective cohort study from 1992 to 2004. Assessment of the relationship between employment in different departments and TB incidence was expressed by relative risk (RR), which was calculated using the annual TB incidence in the population of Serbia as the baseline rate.
RESULTS: A total of 24 HCWs developed active TB in the study period. The mean incidence rate was 413.2 per 100000 persons (RR = 12.2) for hospital staff in the pulmonary department and 20.3/100000 (RR = 0.6) for other departments. Nurses and technicians were at 7.8 times higher risk of developing TB than doctors. The mean working period before the onset of illness was 15.1 years (95%CI 5.1-25.1) for HCWs in pulmonary departments and 8.1 years (95%CI 4.6-11.6) in non-pulmonary departments (P = 0.006).
CONCLUSION: This study indicates that HCWs were at an increased risk of TB, most likely from nosocomial transmission in high-risk departments.
Author List
Skodric-Trifunovic V, Markovic-Denic L, Nagorni-Obradovic L, Vlajinac H, Woeltje KFAuthor
Keith F. Woeltje MD, PhD Associate Dean, Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
FemaleFollow-Up Studies
Humans
Incidence
Infectious Disease Transmission, Patient-to-Professional
Male
Occupational Diseases
Occupational Exposure
Patient Care Team
Prospective Studies
Risk Factors
Serbia
Tuberculosis
