scholarly journals Universal screening for latent and active tuberculosis (TB) in asylum seeking children, Bochum and Hamburg, Germany, September 2015 to November 2016

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya Mueller-Hermelink ◽  
Robin Kobbe ◽  
Benedikt Methling ◽  
Cornelius Rau ◽  
Ulf Schulze-Sturm ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Travel Time ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Foreign Born ◽  
Screening Strategies ◽  
Ltbi Prevalence ◽  
Risk Of Progression ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Low Incidence ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Background In Germany, the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in children has been on the rise since 2009. High numbers of foreign-born asylum seekers have contributed considerably to the disease burden. Therefore, effective screening strategies for latent TB infection (LTBI) and active TB in asylum seeking children are needed. Aim: Our aim was to investigate the prevalence of LTBI and active TB in asylum seeking children up to 15 years of age in two geographic regions in Germany. Methods: Screening for TB was performed in children in asylum seeker reception centres by tuberculin skin test (TST) or interferon gamma release assay (IGRA). Children with positive results were evaluated for active TB. Additionally, country of origin, sex, travel time, TB symptoms, TB contact and Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination status were registered. Results: Of 968 screened children 66 (6.8%) had TB infection (58 LTBI, 8 active TB). LTBI prevalence was similar in children from high (Afghanistan) and low (Syria) incidence countries (8.7% vs 6.4%). There were no differences regarding sex, age or travel time between infected and non-infected children. Children under the age of 6 years were at higher risk of progression to active TB (19% vs 2% respectively, p=0,07). Most children (7/8) with active TB were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. None of the children had been knowingly exposed to TB. Conclusions: Asylum seeking children from high and low incidence countries are both at risk of developing LTBI or active TB. Universal TB screening for all asylum seeking children should be considered.

Serial T-SPOT.TB in household contacts of tuberculosis patients: a 6-year observational study in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. 989-995 ◽  
Author(s):  
H-C. Zhang ◽  
Q-L. Ruan ◽  
J. Wu ◽  
S. Zhang ◽  
S-L. Yu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Observational Study ◽  
Preventive Treatment ◽  
Preventive Therapy ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Household Contacts ◽  
Conversion Rates ◽  
Ltbi Prevalence ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

BACKGROUND: Screening tuberculosis (TB) contacts is a priority for TB control; however, it remains inadequate in most regions of China.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the progression of latent TB infection (LTBI) using the interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) in contacts of active TB patients.DESIGN: This longitudinal prospective observational study included 159 household contacts aged ≥14 years without preventive treatment who were followed up for 6 years to compare their conversion and reversion rates using the T-SPOT®.TB IGRA to diagnose LTBI.RESULTS: Among the 159 household contacts, LTBI positivity was 47.5%. Age was independently associated with LTBI (OR 3.6, 95%CI 1.81–7.14; P = 0.00). T-SPOT.TB conversion rates were respectively 29.4% and 18.8% at 3- and 6-year follow-up. The reversion rates were 9.4% of contacts during the 3-year follow-up period, which increased to 38.2% at the 6-year follow-up. A decreasing trend in spot-forming cells on T-SPOT.TB was observed in most patients at the 6-year follow-up.CONCLUSION: LTBI prevalence among household contacts was relatively high, particularly in elderly patients. Furthermore, serial IGRA testing was highly dynamic; however, this overall trend gradually decreased over time, even if preventive therapy was not prescribed.

scholarly journals Interferon Gamma Release Assay After BCG Vaccination Among Newborns and Family Members Living in an Overcrowded Area in Jakarta, Indonesia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisca Srioetami Tanoerahar ◽  
Indri Rooslamiati ◽  
Natalie Kipuw ◽  
Hadiyanto ◽  
Soegianto Ali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Interferon Gamma ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Latent Tuberculosis ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Pulmonary Tb ◽  
Bcg Vaccination ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Poor Area ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Abstract IntroductionActive tuberculosis (TB) patient is a potential source of Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission in an overcrowded and poor area. Family members living in the same house may have been infected or latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) may develop. The aim of the study was to explore LTBI among newborns and their family members living in an overcrowded area in Jakarta, Indonesia. MethodsA prospective analytical study was conducted among newborns from October 2016 to March 2017. Interferon gamma release assay (IGRA) was examined before BCG vaccination and after 12 weeks. In parallel, TB active case finding was performed among family members of the newborns.ResultsOf 135 newborns, only 117 (86.7%) came for BCG vaccination. Of 346 family members screened, 8 (2.3%) were detected as untreated active pulmonary TB, confirmed by positive sputum and/or MTB culture. Family members living in the same house with active TB individuals (p=0.011, OR 2.69) as well as being males (p = 0.025; OR 1.68) had a significant higher risk of having a positive IGRA. ConclusionsUntreated pulmonary TB infection in overcrowded areas infects the surrounding neighbors, resulting in latent TB infection. An active program for detecting pulmonary TB cases and preventive measures need to be taken seriously to contain the potential spreading of the infection.

scholarly journals High tuberculosis incidence among people living with diabetes in Indonesia

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan M McAllister ◽  
Raspati C Koesoemadinata ◽  
Prayudi Santoso ◽  
Nanny N M Soetedjo ◽  
Abdul Kamil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Incidence Rate ◽  
Preventive Therapy ◽  
Incidence Rates ◽  
Urban Setting ◽  
Sputum Smear ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Abstract Background Data regarding the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) among people living with diabetes (PLWD) in TB-endemic settings are scarce. We examined TB incidence among PLWD in Indonesia who had previously been screened for latent TB infection (LTBI) and TB disease. Methods PLWD (≥18 y of age) in an urban setting were examined a mean 3.4 y after they had been screened for active TB and LTBI. Data on subsequent TB diagnosis were collected by interview and with chest X-ray, sputum smear and Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture. TB incidence rates were stratified for baseline LTBI status, as determined by the QuantiFERON interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA). Results Of 590 PLWD, 101 had died and 163 could not be contacted or refused. Among the 326 who were re-examined, 6 (1.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7 to 4.0) reported being diagnosed already and a further 5 were diagnosed with active TB (1.5%; 95% CI 0.50 to 3.5). The TB incidence rate was 9.85 (95% CI 4.03 to 15.68) per 1000 person-years. TB incidence was higher among PLWD with baseline LTBI (17.13; 95% CI 5.25 to 29.00/1000 person-years) compared with those without LTBI (4.79; 95% CI −0.63 to 10.21), with an incidence rate ratio of 3.57 (95% CI 0.86 to 20.92; p=0.054). Conclusions PLWD with LTBI in Indonesia and similar settings are likely to benefit from TB preventive therapy.

scholarly journals Screening for tuberculosis in migrants and visitors from high-incidence settings: present and future perspectives

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 1800591 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia C. Dobler ◽  
Greg J. Fox ◽  
Paul Douglas ◽  
Kerri A. Viney ◽  
Faiz Ahmad Khan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Born ◽  
Screening Practices ◽  
Migrant Populations ◽  
Long Duration ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
High Incidence ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Low Incidence ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

In most settings with a low incidence of tuberculosis (TB), foreign-born people make up the majority of TB cases, but the distribution of the TB risk among different migrant populations is often poorly quantified. In addition, screening practices for TB disease and latent TB infection (LTBI) vary widely. Addressing the risk of TB in international migrants is an essential component of TB prevention and care efforts in low-incidence countries, and strategies to systematically screen for, diagnose, treat and prevent TB among this group contribute to national and global TB elimination goals.This review provides an overview and critical assessment of TB screening practices that are focused on migrants and visitors from high to low TB incidence countries, including pre-migration screening and post-migration follow-up of those deemed to be at an increased risk of developing TB. We focus mainly on migrants who enter the destination countryviaapplication for a long-stay visa, as well as asylum seekers and refugees, but briefly consider issues related to short-term visitors and those with long-duration multiple-entry visas. Issues related to the screening of children and screening for LTBI are also explored.

Surveillance of Employees of Swiss Federal Asylum Centres for Latent Tuberculosis Infection

Respiration ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 369-373
Author(s):  
Jean-Pierre Zellweger ◽  
Ariane Zellweger-Landry ◽  
Jean-Marie Egger ◽  
Annette Koller-Doser ◽  
Axel Jeremias Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Latent Tuberculosis Infection ◽  
Latent Tuberculosis ◽  
Active Tuberculosis ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Background: Asylum seekers in Switzerland have to register in federal asylum centres (FACs) before formal permission to enter the country. Some of them may have active tuberculosis (TB), exposing fellow refugees and employees. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the risk of TB infection among employees of Swiss FACs. Methods: Between 2010 and 2018, a free interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) was offered to all employees of 8 FACs, at employment and at yearly intervals. We defined latent TB infection as IGRA conversion from negative to positive. IGRA-positive employees were referred to a medical centre for further clinical follow-up. Results: 1,427 tests were performed among 737 employees (54.6% male). 403 (55%) persons were tested only once; 330 (44.5%) were tested several times; for 4 (0.5%) persons, the number of IGRA tests is unknown. Twenty employees (2.7%) had a positive IGRA at baseline, 2 (0.6%) converted from negative to positive during follow-up, resulting in an incidence of 22/10,000 person-years. We observed no case of active TB among employees. Conclusions: The prevalence of latent TB among employees to Swiss FACs and the risk of acquiring TB infection through work-related exposure are low. Yearly IGRA controls in the absence of documented TB exposure seem unnecessary.

scholarly journals Performance of an interferon-gamma release assay for diagnosing latent tuberculosis infection in children

2007 ◽  
Vol 136 (9) ◽  
pp. 1179-1187 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. OKADA ◽  
T. E. MAO ◽  
T. MORI ◽  
T. MIURA ◽  
T. SUGIYAMA ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Interferon Gamma ◽  
Latent Tuberculosis ◽  
Mycobacterial Infection ◽  
Sputum Smear ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Positive Rate ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

SUMMARYNewly developed interferon-gamma release assays have become commercially available to detect tuberculosis (TB) infection in adults. However, little is known about their performance in children. We compared test results between the QuantiFERON-TB® Gold test (QFT) and tuberculin skin test (TST) in young children living with pulmonary TB patients in Cambodia. Of 195 children tested with both QFT and TST, the TST-positive rate of 24% was significantly higher than the QFT-positive rate of 17%. The agreement between the test results was considerable (κ-coefficient 0·63). Positive rates increased from 6% to 32% for QFT and from 15% to 43% for TST, according to the sputum smear grades of the index cases. The presence of Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) scars did not significantly affect the results of TST or QFT in a logistic regression analysis. In conclusion, QFT can be a substitute for TST in detecting latent TB infection in childhood contacts aged ⩽5 years, especially in those who may have a false-positive TST due to BCG vaccination or non-tuberculous mycobacterial infection.

scholarly journals Aptamer Detection of Mycobaterium tuberculosis Mannose-Capped Lipoarabinomannan in Lesion Tissues for Tuberculosis Diagnosis

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanyuan Zhou ◽  
Huan Xiong ◽  
Rong Chen ◽  
Lixia Wan ◽  
Ying Kong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Specificity ◽  
Disease Diagnosis ◽  
Diagnostic Methods ◽  
Interferon Gamma Release Assay ◽  
Tissue Samples ◽  
Formalin Fixed Paraffin ◽  
Formalin Fixed Paraffin Embedded ◽  
Release Assay ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading infectious cause of mortality worldwide. However, the diagnosis of TB, especially extrapulmonary TB (EPTB) diagnosis from lesion tissues, remains a challenge. Nucleic acid aptamers are analogous to antibodies and have advantages of easier modification, high specificity, and affinity. Mannose-capped lipoarabinomannan (ManLAM) is a unique surface lipoglycan component or constantly released from mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb) cell wall, which makes it a perfect candidate biomarker for TB diagnosis. Our present study aims to establish M.tb ManLAM aptamer-based immunohistochemistry (IHC) method for TB diagnosis. We performed TB diagnosis using 263 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue samples including 213 TB samples (pulmonary TB (PTB) and EPTB), and 8 samples from latent TB infection (LTBI) high risk subjects, and 42 samples from other non-TB patients with ManLAM aptamer-based IHC and routine laboratory TB diagnostic methods parallelly. The sensitivity and specificity of the ManLAM aptamer-based IHC were 86.38% and 92.86%, with much higher sensitivity than those of mycobacterial culture (9.66%) and acid-fast staining (AFS) (43.01%) and comparability to Interferon-gamma Release Assay (IGRA) (84.38%) and GeneXpert (79.31%). High agreement between ManLAM based-IHC and IGRA or GeneXpert for TB diagnosis were observed. Furthermore, ManLAM aptamer-based IHC combination with other routine TB laboratory diagnostic methods significantly increased the sensitivity up to 88.64%–97.92%. As our knowledge, this is the first report about aptamer-based IHC for disease diagnosis. Thus, ManLAM aptamer-based IHC has potentials for TB diagnosis, including PTB, and EPTB, and assists the diagnosis of LTBI with high effectiveness, feasibility, and easy production.

scholarly journals Prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection and feasibility of TB preventive therapy among Thai prisoners: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sivaporn Gatechompol ◽  
Weerakit Harnpariphan ◽  
Ruamthip Supanan ◽  
Gompol Suwanpimolkul ◽  
Jiratchaya Sophonphan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Latent Tuberculosis ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Preventive Therapy ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Ltbi Prevalence ◽  
History Of ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Latent Tb ◽  
Latent Tb Infection

Abstract Background Prisons are considered as major reservoirs for tuberculosis. Preventive therapy for latent TB infection (LTBI) is an adjunctive strategy to control TB. However, LTBI data in Thai prisoners is limited. This study assessed the prevalence of LTBI and feasibility of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT). Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among prisoners in Klong Prem Central Prison, Bangkok. Participants were screened for active TB by questionnaire and chest X-ray. LTBI was evaluated by Tuberculin skin test (TST) and QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFTP) among subgroup. Participants with positive TST or QFTP were considered to have LTBI. Participants with LTBI were offered IPT. Results From August 2018–November 2019, 1002 participants were analyzed. All participants were male with a median age of 38 (IQR 32–50) years. LTBI identified by either TST/QFTP was present in 466 (46.5%) participants. TST was positive in 359 (36%) participants. In the subgroup of 294 participants who had both TST and QFTP results, 181/294 (61.6%) tested positive by QFTP. Agreement between TST and QFTP was 55.1% (Kappa = 0.17). The risk factors associated with LTBI were previous incarceration (aOR 1.53, 95%CI, 1.16–2.01, p = 0.002), history of prior active TB (aOR 3.02, 95%CI, 1.74–5.24, p < 0.001) and duration of incarceration ≥10 years (aOR 1.86, 95%CI, 1.24–2.79, p = 0.003). Majority of LTBI participants (82%) agreed to take IPT. Three hundred and 56 (93%) participants completed treatment whereas 27 (7%) participants discontinued IPT due to the side effects of INH. Conclusion This is the first study to evaluate the prevalence of LTBI and feasibility of IPT among Thai prisoners. LTBI prevalence in male prisoners in Thailand is high. LTBI screening and treatment should be implemented together with other preventive components.

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