TB

This guideline presents updated data about drug interactions between protease inhibitors and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors for treatment of HIV infection together with rifamycins for treatment of TB.

This report summarizes national surveillance TB data for 1998 and compares them with similar data from 1992. The report includes number of reported cases and the percentage change in number of cases and rates by state and year as well as by sex, age, and year for 1992 and 1998. Findings indicate that the number of TB cases has decreased and that trends in the number of reported cases and TB incidence varied by geographic area and population characteristics.

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.

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 guideline is intended to provide a framework and understanding of the diagnostic approaches to TB infection/disease and to present a classification scheme that facilitates management of all persons who have had diagnostic tests.

This notice explains that on September 30, 1999, the Food and Drug Administration approved a reformulated amplified Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Direct (MTD) test for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in acid-fast Bacille (AFB) smear-positive and smear-negative respiratory specimens from patients suspected of having TB.

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 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 information sheet contends that new rapid diagnostic laboratory techniques appear to have increased the possiblity of laboratory cross contamination and explains how to avoid diagnostic errors based on false-positive cultures.

This fact sheet discusses the meaning of a negative TB skin test and states that persons with HIV/AIDS may be at risk for false negative results.