Latent tuberculosis infection in healthcare workers at a community hospital in Qatar

Summary: Routine screening of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) is recommended as an essential component in the prevention of TB transmission in healthcare facilities. Objective: To determine the prevalence of LTBI among healthcare workers (HCWs) in a community hospital. Methods: A descriptive study was carried out at The Cuban Hospital from August 2012 to May 2013 for newly hired medical staff. As part of the preemployment evaluation, the tuberculin skin test (TST) and QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube test (QFT-G) were performed. The information regarding the demographics, profile, experience as HCWs, any previous contact with TB patients and travels abroad were collected. Analysis: Test of independence, Student's t test and Wilcoxon Mann–Whitney were used. For hypothesis testing, a significance level of 0.05 was adopted. Results: TST results were positive in 14 subjects (6.9%), of which 11 were nurses, and 12 were females. QFT-G results were positive in six subjects (3.0%), who were older than those with negative results (44.5 vs. 38.9 years) and had more experience as HCW (21.7 vs. 16.8 years). Compared with subjects negative for QFT-G, positive subjects reported a higher frequency of both direct contact with tuberculosis patients (83.3% vs. 25%) and previous travels to countries with high TB incidence. Conclusion: Incidence of LTBI was low, especially when QFT-G results were considered, highlighting the history of traveling to countries with high TB incidence as an associated key factor. Keywords: Latent tuberculosis, Mantoux test, QuantiFERON-TB Gold, Cub