The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review

dc.contributor.authorGrobler, Liesl
dc.contributor.authorMehtar, Shaheen
dc.contributor.authorDheda, Keertan
dc.contributor.authorAdams, Shahieda
dc.contributor.authorBabatunde, Sanni
dc.contributor.authorvan der Walt, Martie
dc.contributor.authorOsman, Muhammad
dc.date.accessioned2016-08-25T07:25:59Z
dc.date.available2016-08-25T07:25:59Z
dc.date.issued2016-08-20
dc.date.updated2016-08-20T18:02:06Z
dc.description.abstractBackground: In South Africa, workplace acquired tuberculosis (TB) is a significant occupational problem among health care workers. In order to manage the problem effectively it is important to know the burden of TB in health care workers. This systematic review describes the epidemiology of TB in South African health care workers. Methods: A comprehensive search of electronic databases [MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science (Social Sciences Citation Index/Science Citation Index), Cochrane Library (including CENTRAL register of Controlled Trials), CINAHL and WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP)] was conducted up to April 2015 for studies reporting on any aspect of TB epidemiology in health care workers in South Africa. Results: Of the 16 studies included in the review, ten studies reported on incidence of active TB disease in health care workers, two report on the prevalence of active TB disease, two report on the incidence of latent TB infection, three report on the prevalence of latent TB infection and four studies report on the number of TB cases in health care workers in various health care facilities in South Africa. Five studies provide information on risk factors for TB in health care workers. All of the included studies were conducted in publicly funded health care facilities; predominately located in KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape provinces. The majority of the studies reflect a higher incidence and prevalence of active TB disease in health care workers, including drug-resistant TB, compared to the surrounding community or general population. Conclusions: There is relatively little research on the epidemiology of TB in health care workers in South Africa, despite the importance of the issue. To determine the true extent of the TB epidemic in health care workers, regular screening for TB disease should be conducted on all health care workers in all health care facilities, but future research is required to investigate the optimal approach to TB screening in health care workers in South Africa. The evidence base shows a high burden of both active and latent TB in health care workers in South Africa necessitating an urgent need to improve existing TB infection, prevention and control measures in South African health care facilities.
dc.identifier.apacitationGrobler, L., Mehtar, S., Dheda, K., Adams, S., Babatunde, S., van der Walt, M., & Osman, M. (2016). The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review. <i>BMC Health Services Research</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/21526en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationGrobler, Liesl, Shaheen Mehtar, Keertan Dheda, Shahieda Adams, Sanni Babatunde, Martie van der Walt, and Muhammad Osman "The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review." <i>BMC Health Services Research</i> (2016) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/21526en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationBMC Health Services Research. 2016 Aug 20;16(1):416
dc.identifier.ris TY - Journal Article AU - Grobler, Liesl AU - Mehtar, Shaheen AU - Dheda, Keertan AU - Adams, Shahieda AU - Babatunde, Sanni AU - van der Walt, Martie AU - Osman, Muhammad AB - Background: In South Africa, workplace acquired tuberculosis (TB) is a significant occupational problem among health care workers. In order to manage the problem effectively it is important to know the burden of TB in health care workers. This systematic review describes the epidemiology of TB in South African health care workers. Methods: A comprehensive search of electronic databases [MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science (Social Sciences Citation Index/Science Citation Index), Cochrane Library (including CENTRAL register of Controlled Trials), CINAHL and WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP)] was conducted up to April 2015 for studies reporting on any aspect of TB epidemiology in health care workers in South Africa. Results: Of the 16 studies included in the review, ten studies reported on incidence of active TB disease in health care workers, two report on the prevalence of active TB disease, two report on the incidence of latent TB infection, three report on the prevalence of latent TB infection and four studies report on the number of TB cases in health care workers in various health care facilities in South Africa. Five studies provide information on risk factors for TB in health care workers. All of the included studies were conducted in publicly funded health care facilities; predominately located in KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape provinces. The majority of the studies reflect a higher incidence and prevalence of active TB disease in health care workers, including drug-resistant TB, compared to the surrounding community or general population. Conclusions: There is relatively little research on the epidemiology of TB in health care workers in South Africa, despite the importance of the issue. To determine the true extent of the TB epidemic in health care workers, regular screening for TB disease should be conducted on all health care workers in all health care facilities, but future research is required to investigate the optimal approach to TB screening in health care workers in South Africa. The evidence base shows a high burden of both active and latent TB in health care workers in South Africa necessitating an urgent need to improve existing TB infection, prevention and control measures in South African health care facilities. DA - 2016-08-20 DB - OpenUCT DO - 10.1186/s12913-016-1601-5 DP - University of Cape Town J1 - BMC Health Services Research KW - Tuberculosis KW - Health care workers KW - Health personnel KW - Sub-Saharan Africa LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2016 T1 - The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review TI - The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/21526 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-016-1601-5
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/21526
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationGrobler L, Mehtar S, Dheda K, Adams S, Babatunde S, van der Walt M, et al. The epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review. BMC Health Services Research. 2016; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/21526.en_ZA
dc.language.rfc3066en
dc.publisherBioMed Central
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Medicineen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Health Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.rightsCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
dc.rights.holderThe Author(s).
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.sourceBMC Health Services Research
dc.source.urihttp://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/
dc.subjectTuberculosis
dc.subjectHealth care workers
dc.subjectHealth personnel
dc.subjectSub-Saharan Africa
dc.titleThe epidemiology of tuberculosis in health care workers in South Africa: a systematic review
dc.typeJournal Article
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceArticleen_ZA
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