Estimation of incidence of tuberculosis infection in health-care workers using repeated interferon-γ assays

2009 ◽  
Vol 137 (12) ◽  
pp. 1691-1698 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. YOSHIYAMA ◽  
N. HARADA ◽  
K. HIGUCHI ◽  
Y. NAKAJIMA ◽  
H. OGATA

SUMMARYThe aim was to estimate the incidence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection in health-care workers (HCWs) in Japan. We repeated cross-sectional surveys of HCWs with QuantiFERON®-TB Gold (QFT-G) in 2003, 2005 and 2007 at a hospital with tuberculosis (TB) wards, and 311 HCWs who underwent QFT-G testing two or three times were included in the study. Five HCWs (1·8%) converted from negative to positive. Incidence of new TB infection was estimated to be 0·6/100 person-years by the CDC's definition. Thirteen positive persons (41%) reverted from positive to negative. Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified a significant association between QFT-G conversion and working in TB wards. The IFN-γ levels of all but two subjects with reverting or converting QFT-G results were close to the test's cut-off. The incidence of Mtb infection in HCWs at our hospital was higher than that estimated for the general population in Japan. Criteria for defining QFT-G conversion and reversion need further investigation considering the high proportion of reversion, as the incidence of infection would have changed if we had applied other definitions.

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. e0244415
Author(s):  
Mazin Barry ◽  
Mohamad-Hani Temsah ◽  
Abdullah Alhuzaimi ◽  
Nurah Alamro ◽  
Ayman Al-Eyadhy ◽  
...  

Objectives This study aimed to identify coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine perception, acceptance, confidence, hesitancy, and barriers among health care workers (HCWs). Methods An online national cross-sectional pilot-validated questionnaire was self-administered by HCWs in Saudi Arabia, which is a nation with MERS-CoV experience. The main outcome variable was HCWs’ acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine candidates. The factors associated with vaccination acceptance were identified through a logistic regression analysis, and the level of anxiety was measured using a validated instrument to measure general anxiety levels. Results Out of the 1512 HCWs who completed the study questionnaire—of which 62.4% were women—70% were willing to receive COVID-19 vaccines. A logistic regression analysis revealed that male HCWs (ORa = 1.551, 95% CI: 1.122–2.144), HCWs who believe in vaccine safety (ORa = 2.151; 95% CI: 1.708–2.708), HCWs who believe that COVID vaccines are the most likely way to stop the pandemic (ORa = 1.539; 95% CI: 1.259–1.881), and HCWs who rely on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website for COVID 19 updates (ORa = 1.505, 95% CI: 1.125–2.013) were significantly associated with reporting a willingness to be vaccinated. However, HCWs who believed that the vaccines were rushed without evidence-informed testing were found to be 60% less inclined to accept COVID-19 vaccines (ORa = 0.394, 95% CI: 0.298–0.522). Conclusion Most HCWs are willing to receive COVID-19 vaccines once they are available; the satisfactoriness of COVID-19 vaccination among HCWs is crucial because health professionals’ knowledge and confidence toward vaccines are important determining factors for not only their own vaccine acceptance but also recommendation for such vaccines to their patients.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. e102773 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernanda Mattos de Souza ◽  
Thiago Nascimento do Prado ◽  
Jair dos Santos Pinheiro ◽  
Renata Lyrio Peres ◽  
Thamy Carvalho Lacerda ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tesfaye Assebe Yadeta ◽  
Yadeta Dessie ◽  
Bikila Balis

Background: Depression of health care workers was related to work absences, resignations, and poor work performance, affecting the quality of patient care and the health care system. The Coronavirus disease pandemic has had an effect on the mental health of health care workers. Health care workers are facing challenges that can be stressful, overwhelming, and cause strong emotions, may put them at higher risk to develop depression. There is limited evidence that assesses health care workers' depression and its associated factors in the study area during the Coronavirus disease pandemic. Therefore this study aimed to assess depression and associated factors among health care workers in eastern Ethiopia.Method: The cross-sectional study design was conducted from October 26th to November 15, 2020. A total of 265 health care workers from 10 health facilities participated. Patient Health Questionnaire was used for the collection of depressive symptoms. The data were analyzed by using STATA version 14 software. To assess the association between depression and the predictors Adjusted Odds Ratio along with a 95% confidence interval was estimated by using logistic regression analysis. A statistical significance was declared at p-value ≤ 0.05.Results: Of the total 265 study participant, 176 (66.4%) and 95% CI: 60.4%, 71.8% of them reported depressive symptoms. Of 176 reported symptoms of depression 27.9, 24.1, 9.4, 3.7, and 1.1% were had minimal, mild, moderate, moderate-severe, and severe depressive symptoms respectively. The multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed the odds of depression were 2.34 times higher among female participants compared to male participants (AOR: 2.34, 95%CI: 1.09-5.02). In addition, the odds of depression for participants who perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 was 4.05 times higher among their counterpart (AOR: 4.05, 95%CI: 1.12-14.53).Conclusions: Health care workers who experienced depression in the study was high. Health care workers' mental health needs to be protected during the COVID-19 pandemic. Female health care workers and health care workers perceived susceptibility of COVID-19 need attention.


2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 191-199
Author(s):  
Abdulellah Almohaya ◽  
Abdulwahab Aldrees ◽  
Layan Akkielah ◽  
Alshaima Talal Hashim ◽  
Fahad Almajid ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Health-care workers (HCW) are susceptible to latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). The prevalence of LTBI in HCW in Saudi Arabia has not been reported using the fourth-generation interferon gamma release assay QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus). OBJECTIVE: Determine the prevalence of LTBI in a large heterogeneous HCW population and assess risk factors for LTBI. DESIGN: Cross-sectional and case-control study. SETTING: Tertiary academic hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Medical records of HCWs who had QFT-Plus performed between January to December 2018 were reviewed and included in the cross-sectional study. In a subset analysis, randomly selected positive QFT-Plus cases were compared with controls selected from the same areas of work. Univariate and binary logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the significance of other factors to QFT-PLus positivity. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence of LTBI in HCWs and potential risk factors for LTBI. SAMPLE SIZE: 3024 HCWs in the cross-sectional analysis; 294 cases and 294 controls in the case-control analysis. RESULTS: Twenty-four percent (n=733) of the HCWs had a positive QFT-Plus. The median (interquartile range) age was 34.0 (31.0-37.1) years, 71% were female, and only 24.8% were of Saudi nationals. Nursing represented 57.7% of HCWs, and 24.7% were working in a non-clinical area. Only 20.3% worked in TB-related departments. A higher risk of LTBI was present in HCWs who were older than 50 years (OR=1.95), from either Philippines (OR=4.7) or the Indian subcontinent (OR=4.1), working as a nurse (OR=2.7), allied health profession (OR=2.1), radiology technician (OR=3.1), or in the emergency room (OR=2.4) or intensive care unit (OR=2.1). In the binary logistic regression, independent predictors for positive QFT-Plus were age group older than 50 years (aOR=2.96), known TB exposure (aOR=1.97), and not receiving BCG at birth (aOR=3.08). LIMITATION: Single-center, retrospective, possible recall bias for BCG vaccination. CONCLUSION: The high prevalence of LTBI among HCW emphasizes the need to continue pre-employment screening, especially for employed personnel from high endemic areas, with targeted annual screening for the same group and other identified high-risk groups. These findings can aid in the development of national screening guidelines for LTBI in HCW. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: None.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S232-S233
Author(s):  
Suman Ahmed ◽  
Mohammad Shamsul Ahsan ◽  
Rubaiya Khan ◽  
Mahbubul Hasan ◽  
Fahmida Ferdous ◽  
...  

AimsFrontline health care workers exposed to COVID-19 patients could be at increased risk of developing psychological issues. The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of mental health-related problems, specifically depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and insomnia among health care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh and to compare these between medical and allied health care professionals.MethodThis cross-sectional survey was conducted using Google Form then subsequent telephone interview between June and August 2020. Using random sampling, a total of 479 health care professionals participated in the study. We collected data on demographics. Anxiety and depression were measured using 4 items Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4), PTSD was measured using 4 items Primary Care (PC)-PTSD-Screen, and insomnia was measured by using a 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to assess risk factors associated with mental health symptoms.ResultOverall, 17.6% of frontline health workers had symptoms of anxiety, 15.5% had depression symptoms, 7.6% had PTSD symptoms and 5.9% had symptoms of insomnia. Compared to allied health professionals (n = 113, 24%), doctors (n = 366, 76%) had significantly higher prevalence of anxiety: 21.1% vs 06%, (OR = 4.19; 95% CI = 1.88–9.35; p-value <0.001); depression: 18% vs 6.8%, (OR = 2.99; 95% CI = 1.40–6.42; p-value 0.005); PTSD: 9.4% vs 1.7%, (OR = 5.96; 95% CI = 1.41–25.11; p-value 0.015) and insomnia: 7.4% vs 0.9%, (OR = 9.22; 95% CI = 1.24–68.4; p-value 0.03). Logistic regression analysis showed that pre-existing medical illness has significantly more risks of developing symptoms of anxiety (adjusted OR = 2.85; 95% CI = 1.71–4.76; p-value <0.001) and depression (OR = 2.29; 95% CI = 1.39–3.77; p-value 0.001). Having a postgraduate degree (adjusted OR = 6.13; 95% CI = 1.28–29.28; p-value 0.023) and working in secondary care setting (adjusted OR = 3.08; 95% CI = 1.18–8.02; p value 0.021) have significant predictors of developing anxiety symptoms among health workers. Those who had worked more than 6 weeks in COVID-19 dedicated hospitals had risk of developing symptoms of PSTD (OR = 2.83; 95% CI = 1.35–5.93; p value 0.006) and insomnia (OR = 2.63; 95% CI = 1.15–6.02; p value 0.022).ConclusionOur study demonstrated a high prevalence of symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD, and insomnia among Bangladeshi frontline health workers (particularly among doctors) during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is an urgent need to address the mental health needs of frontline health workers.Funding: Medical Research Council, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka, Bangladesh.


Author(s):  
Hasan S. Alamri ◽  
Wesam F. Mousa ◽  
Abdullah Algarni ◽  
Shehata F. Megahid ◽  
Ali Al Bshabshe ◽  
...  

Objective: Little is known about the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) among the health care workers in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the psychological impact of COVID-19 among the health care workers. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from May till mid-July among 389 health care workers from government and private hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using a pre-structured online questionnaire that measured adverse psychological outcomes, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scale and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale. The Pearson chi-square test was used to assess the distribution of depression and anxiety among health care workers. Results: A high level of anxiety was recorded among the health care workers, and 69.3% of health care workers below the age of 40 were found to have depression. There was a significant increase in depression among staff with chronic health problems (72.1% vs. 61.9%; p = 0.048). High anxiety levels were detected among young staff compared to others (68.7% vs. 43.8%; p = 0.001). Moreover, 82.1% of the female staff were anxious, as compared to 55.6% of the males (p = 0.001). Conclusions: We found increased prevalence of adverse psychological outcomes among the health care workers in Saudi Arabia during the outbreak of COVID-19. Therefore, there is a need for proper screening and development of corresponding preventive measures to decrease the adverse psychological outcomes.


2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moges Tadesse ◽  
Takele Tadesse

Accidental needlestick injuries sustained by health-care workers are a common occupational hazard and a public health issue in health-care settings. An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted and 30.9% of health-care workers had experienced at least one needlestick injury in the previous year.


Author(s):  
David Goldblatt ◽  
Marina Johnson ◽  
Oana Falup-Pecurariu ◽  
Inga Ivaskeviciene ◽  
Vana Spoulou ◽  
...  

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