title: Prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection among tuberculosis laboratory workers in Iran.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The risk of transmission ofMycobacterium tuberculosisfrom patients to health care workers (HCWs) is a neglected problem in many countries, including Iran. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of latent tuberculosis (TB) infection (LTBI) among TB laboratory staff in Iran, and to elucidate the risk factors associated with LTBI.
  
  
  METHODS
  All TB laboratory staff (689 individuals) employed in the TB laboratories of 50 Iranian universities of medical sciences and a random sample consisting of 317 low-risk HCWs were included in this cross-sectional study. Participants with tuberculin skin test indurations of 10 mm or more were considered to have an LTBI.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of LTBI among TB laboratory staff and low-risk HCWs was 24.83% (95% confidence interval [CI], 21.31 to 27.74%) and 14.82% (95% CI, 11.31 to 19.20%), respectively. No active TB cases were found in either group. After adjusting for potential confounders, TB laboratory staff were more likely to have an LTBI than low-risk HCWs (prevalence odds ratio, 2.06; 95% CI, 1.35 to 3.17).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that LTBI are an occupational health problem among TB laboratory staff in Iran. This study reinforces the need to design and implement simple, effective, and affordable TB infection control programs in TB laboratories in Iran.
authors.affiliation: Center for Communicable Diseases Control, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.|Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahshid
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2913-4294
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nasehi
authors.affiliation: Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.|Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Abdolrazagh
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-1852-194X
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hashemi-Shahraki
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.|Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Amin
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-0623-7503
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Doosti-Irani
authors.affiliation: Center for Communicable Diseases Control, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Saeed
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6875-3426
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sharafi
authors.affiliation: Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.|Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ehsan
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1997-517X
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mostafavi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D059232:Laboratory Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055985:Latent Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D014374:Tuberculin Test
keywords: Health personnel; Iran; Latent tuberculosis; Prevalence; Tuberculin test