Role of interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) in health care workers

Swindells, JE, Aliyu, SH, Enoch, DA and Abubakar, I (2009) Role of interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) in health care workers. Journal of Hospital Infection, 73 (2). pp. 101-108.

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Abstract

The advent of interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) provides new options for detection of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). This is particularly relevant to healthcare workers (HCWs), who are at higher risk of infection, but who have often also been vaccinated. In this article, we discuss the role of IGRAs for the diagnosis of LTBI in various healthcare settings. A search was performed for studies that reported data on IGRAs in HCWs in the last 18 years. Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria. IGRAs showed poor agreement with the tuberculin skin test (TST), except in countries with high incidences of tuberculosis (TB), but generally correlated better with markers of exposure to TB including during contact investigation. The T-SPOT®.TB assay has not been adequately assessed in HCWs; the few studies available showed enhanced specificity of T-SPOT.TB when compared to TST. This review confirms the utility of IGRAs as important tools in the prevention and control of tuberculosis in healthcare settings.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	sdg 3 - good health and well-being ,/dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/good_health_and_well_being
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Medicine (former - to 2013)
Depositing User:	EPrints Services
Date Deposited:	25 Nov 2010 11:13
Last Modified:	15 Jun 2023 13:31
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/15074
DOI:	10.1016/j.jhin.2009.05.005

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