title: Latent Tuberculosis in Health Care Workers Exposed to Active Tuberculosis in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Oman.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Data on the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) in healthcare workers (HCW) in Oman and the Arabian Gulf is scarce. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of latent tuberculosis (LTB) among HCW exposed to active TB in one of the tertiary care hospitals in Muscat.
  
  
  METHODS
  Exposed HCW were screened for LTB from January to June 2012 using skin tuberculin and serum interferon tests. Candidates were followed-up for a total of nine months. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 371 exposed HCW were involved in the study. The incidence of LTB in exposed HCW was 33.2% (n = 123). Almost 54% (66/123) of the HCW started treatment and only 42.4% (28/66) completed the full nine-month treatment course.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The high prevalence of LTBI in exposed HCW merits further evaluation of the screening and treatment programs in the country. Future countrywide studies are warranted to provide more precise statistics on the prevalence and management of this public health issue.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Faryal
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Khamis
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Adil
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Lawati
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, College of Medicine and Health Sciences,  Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman; Gulf Health Research, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Ibrahim
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Al-Zakwani
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Seif
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Al-Abri
authors.affiliation: Nursing Department, Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Jaleelah
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Al-Naamani
authors.affiliation: Oman Medical Specialty Board, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Harith
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Al-Harthi
authors.affiliation: Public Health Laboratory, Ministry of Health, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Amina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Jardani
authors.affiliation: Nursing Department, Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman.
authors.forename: Aliya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Harthi
keywords: Health Personnel; Interferon-gamma Release assays; Latent Tuberculosis; Oman; Prevalence; Tuberculin Test