Abstract
SETTING: Five medical schools in three cities with different tuberculosis (TB) incidence rates in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. OBJECTIVE: To estimate prevalence of and associated factors for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) among medical students. DESIGN: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among undergraduate students in pre-clinical, early and late clinical years from schools in cities with low (28/100000), intermediate (63/100000) and high (114/100000) TB incidence rates. Information on socio-demographic profile, previous BCG vaccination, potential TB exposure, co-morbidity and use of respiratory protective masks was obtained. A tuberculin skin test (TST) was performed using the Mantoux technique by an experienced professional. A positive TST, defined as induration ≥10 mm, was considered LTBI. RESULTS: LTBI prevalence was 6.9% (95%CI 5.4-8.6). In multivariate analysis, male sex (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.8; 95%CI 1.1-3.0), late clinical years (aOR 1.9; 95%CI 1.01-3.5), intermediate TB incidence (aOR 4.3; 95%CI 1.3-14.6) and high TB incidence in the city of medical school (aOR 5.1; 95%CI 1.6-16.8) were significantly associated with LTBI. CONCLUSIONS: The higher prevalence of LTBI in late clinical years suggests that medical students are at increased risk for nosocomial Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. The implementation of a TB control program may be necessary in medical schools, particularly in cities with higher TB incidence.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 841-847 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease |
Volume | 9 |
Issue number | 8 |
State | Published - Aug 2005 |
Keywords
- Medical students
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Nosocomial infection
- Tuberculin test
- Tuberculosis
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine
- Infectious Diseases