Tuberculin skin test and Interferon-gamma release assay agreement, and associated factors with latent tuberculosis infection, in medical and nursing students in Bandung, Indonesia.

BACKGROUND: No gold standard diagnostic test exists for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). The intra-dermal tuberculin skin test (TST) has known limitations and Interferon-gamma release assays (IGRA) have been developed as an alternative. We aimed to assess agreement between IGRA and TST, and risk factors for test positivity, in Indonesian healthcare students. METHODS: Medical and nursing students starting their clinical training were screened using IGRA and TST. Agreement between the two tests was measured using Cohen's Kappa coefficient. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with test positivity. RESULTS: Of 266 students, 43 (16.2%) were IGRA positive and 85 (31.9%) TST positive. Agreement between the two tests was 74.7% (kappa 0.33, 95% CI 0.21-0.45, P<0.0001). Students who had direct contact with family or friends with TB were less likely to be test positive using IGRA (AOR 0.18, 95% CI 0.05-0.64) and using TST (AOR 0.51, 95% CI 0.26-0.99). CONCLUSION: Test positivity for LTBI was lower when measured by IGRA than by TST, with poor agreement between the two tests. Known close TB contact was unexpectedly negatively associated with positivity by either test. Longitudinal studies may be required to help determine the best test for LTBI in healthcare students in Indonesia.

Tuberculosis infection control measures and knowledge in primary health centres in Bandung, Indonesia.

Background: Health care workers (HCWs) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) continue to have an unacceptably high prevalence and incidence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection due to high exposure to tuberculosis (TB) cases at health care facilities and often inadequate infection control measures. This can contribute to an increased risk of transmission not only to HCWs themselves but also to patients and the general population. Aim: We assessed implementation of TB infection control measures in primary health centres (PHCs) in Bandung, Indonesia, and TB knowledge among HCWs. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between May and November 2017 amongst a stratified sample of the PHCs, and their HCWs, that manage TB patients in Bandung. Questionnaires were used to assess TB infection control measures plus HCW knowledge. Summary statistics, linear regression and the Kruskal-Wallis test were used for analysis. Results: The median number of TB infection control measures implemented in 24 PHCs was 21 of 41 assessed. Only one of five management controls was implemented, 15 of 24 administrative controls, three of nine environmental controls and one of three personal respiratory protection controls. PHCs with TB laboratory facilities and high TB case numbers were more likely to implement TB infection control measures than other PHCs (p=0.003). In 398 HCWs, the median number of correct responses for knowledge was 10 (IQR 9-11) out of 11. Discussion: HCWs had good TB knowledge. TB infection control measures were generally not implemented and need to be strengthened in PHCs to reduce M. tuberculosis transmission to HCWs, patients and visitors.

High risk of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection among medical and nursing students in Indonesia: a 1-year prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Medical and nursing students entering their clinical programmes are at increased risk for tuberculosis (TB) in TB-endemic settings. Relatively little is known about Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection among such students in high-endemic countries. METHODS: We examined M. tuberculosis infection among medical and nursing students starting clinical training in Bandung, Indonesia using interferon-γ release assay (IGRA) QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus. IGRA-negative students had a repeat test after 1 y and logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with IGRA positivity or conversion. RESULTS: There were 379 students included in this study: 248 (65.4%) were medical students and 131 (34.6%) were nursing students. Of 379 students, 70 (18.5%) were IGRA positive at baseline. Of 293 IGRA-negative students with 1-y results, 26 (8.9%) underwent IGRA conversion. Being a medical student (adjusted relative risk [ARR] 5.15 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.82 to 14.59], p=0.002) and participation in sputum collection or bronchoscopy were associated with IGRA conversion (ARR 2.74 [95% CI 1.29 to 5.79], p=0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Medical and nursing students entering clinical training are at high risk of M. tuberculosis infection and need improved infection prevention and control strategies.