| Summary: | The rise in tuberculosis (TB) throughout the world, fueled by the pandemic of infection with the human immune-deficiency virus and with multidrug resistant strains of the bacillus, poses a great occupational hazard to health workers. In developing countries, nosocomial transmission of tuberculosis calls for preventive measures that are cost-effective. This article describes time-tested interventions that have helped reduce transmission, including some administrative, diagnostic, therapeutic, and protective measures for the benefit of health workers. Attention is drawn to factors that are associated with the transmission of TB to health personnel, to efficient ways of handling patients in whom TB is suspected, and to special measures for the protection of laboratoy staff.
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