TB

This report discusses the attempts by two states, New York and South Carolina, to improve patient adherence to anti-TB therapy during 1986-1991 using a combination of strategies. Both states used a combination of strategies: incentives, directly observed therapy (DOT), court-ordered DOT, and commitment to a secured, long-term care facility. The report provides recommendations for local and state health departments to increase completion rates of anti-TB therapy.

This book describes exposure, infection, disease, and death from TB using epidemiological data. It reviews statistics, including the number of TB cases, the duration of infection in these cases, and the number of case contact interactions per unit of time.

This book presents information about implementing, maintaining, and evaluating respirator protection programs in health care facilities.

This report in the form of a notice to readers states that CDC in conjunction with the American Thoracic Society expects to issue new guidelines on screening and preventive therapy for TB that will include a recommendation on the use of the two-month regimen of daily rifampin and pyrazinamide (2RZ) as an alternative to 12-month isoniazid for prevention of TB in HIV-negative persons for whom preventive therapy is indicated. A comparative trial of the 2RZ regimen in HIV-negative persons has not been conducted.

This manual provides information about TB program reviews and planning and technical support. It provides a view of international partnership towards the goal of eliminating TB.

This report reviews the new CDC guidelines about TB screening for immigrants and the medical treatment of infected persons. Recent immigration trends and the epidemiology of TB among immigrants is examined. The report discusses the prioritization of TB case finding, screening, and preventive therapy for immigrants in the overall elimination of TB in the United States. It includes recommendations to improve epidemiologic reporting on the federal, state, and local levels for foreign-born persons in the US.

This manual provides a structured plan for the training, development and evaluation of healthcare workers involved in contact investigation. It focuses on interview techniques and communication skills and provides data collection instruments for the provision of objective feedback to the interviewer.

This study examined the clinic records of TB programs to determine whether these programs used recommended practices to manage HIV-positive persons exposed to TB. The study suggests that TB programs need to review their contact investigation policies, procedures, and outcomes to reduce missed opportunities for preventing active TB among HIV-positive close contacts.

This report describes an outbreak of drug-susceptible TB that occurred in a South Carolina state correctional facility housing HIV-infected inmates and illustrates the need for increased vigilance for TB in settings in which HIV-infected persons congregate.

This report describes findings from two cases in which TB was misdiagnosed due to laboratory cross-contamination and summarizes the results of the ensuing investigation, which demonstrated the value of DNA fingerprinting to identify occurrences of cross-contamination among patient specimens.