Potentially preventable tuberculosis cases in children exposed to a contaminant case.

Early screening is recommended in children exposed to a contagious case of tuberculosis (TB), to prevent rapid progression to active TB. The aim of this study was to evaluate the percentage of potentially preventable cases of pediatric TB stemming from inadequate screening. The data gathered on children aged 0 to 10 years, who were evaluated by the Paris Center for TB Control (CLAT75) between January 2009 and December 2013, were extracted and retrospectively analyzed.

[Longitudinal follow-up of contact subjects of cases of tuberculosis in Paris].

Aim: To our knowledge, the proportion of active tuberculosis diagnosed after 12-18 months during a screening tuberculosis process in a specialized centre (centre de lutte antituberculeuse [CLAT]) has not been described in France. The majority of other countries do not have any recommendation to screen at this time.

Methods: We evaluated the number of treated or not treated latent tuberculosis infections (LTI) identified during tuberculosis screening.

Tuberculosis control in big cities and urban risk groups in the European Union: a consensus statement.

In low-incidence countries in the European Union (EU), tuberculosis (TB) is concentrated in big cities, especially among certain urban high-risk groups including immigrants from TB high-incidence countries, homeless people, and those with a history of drug and alcohol misuse. Elimination of TB in European big cities requires control measures focused on multiple layers of the urban population. The particular complexities of major EU metropolises, for example high population density and social structure, create specific opportunities for transmission, but also enable targeted TB control interventions, not efficient in the general population, to be effective or cost effective.

[Recent latent tuberculous infection (LTBI) in different sub-groups of contacts].

Screening for latent tuberculous infection (LTBI) in contacts of identified cases of tuberculosis should be based on intention to treat. We know that only LTBI that is attributable to a recent transmission requires preventive treatment in immunocompetent adults. There is no current test that allows accurate dating of LTBI.

Pulmonary complications after elective liver transplantation-incidence, risk factors, and outcome.

Unlabelled: After liver transplantation (LT), postoperative pulmonary complications (PPC) occur in approximately 35% to 50% of the recipients. Among these PPC, pneumonia is the most frequently encountered. Pulmonary dysfunction has also been widely reported among patients awaiting LT.

Impact of a 14-year screening programme on tuberculosis transmission among the homeless in Paris.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of an active case-finding programme on tuberculosis (TB) transmission in homeless shelters in Paris, France.

Design: Between 1994 and 1997, an active case-finding programme was implemented in homeless shelters using a mobile radiological screening unit, and continued from 1997 to 2007. During these periods, the strains isolated from TB cases diagnosed in the homeless were genotyped by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis using the insertion sequence IS6110 as a probe.

[Screening contacts for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) using an interferon test in Paris in 2009].

There are two reasons for screening contacts: one is to identify cases of secondary tuberculosis disease (TB) and the other is to identify new cases of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). The tuberculin skin test (TST) and the interferon-gamma-release assay (IGRA) have their limitations when used for the detection of LTBI. They neither allow a definite diagnosis of LTBI nor provide information as to the date of onset.

Acute liver failure due to antitubercular therapy: Strategy for antitubercular treatment before and after liver transplantation.

The standard antitubercular treatment (ATT), which consists of isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RIF), ethambutol, and pyrazinamide (PZA), is the best available treatment for tuberculosis (TB). However, the hepatotoxicity of INH and PZA can be severe, and even after drug withdrawal, patients may require liver transplantation (LT). In these cases, the strategy for the treatment of TB is poorly defined.

Factors associated with excessively lengthy treatment of tuberculosis in the eastern Paris region of France in 2004.

Background: Few data are available on prescriber adherence to tuberculosis (TB) treatment guidelines. In particular, excessively long treatment carries a risk of avoidable adverse effects and represents a waste of healthcare resources. We examined factors potentially associated with excessively long treatment.

Management and treatment outcomes of tuberculous patients, eastern Paris, France, 2004.

Background: France was one of the few European countries without a national tuberculosis (TB) treatment outcome monitoring system until 2007.

Objective: To examine TB management and treatment outcomes in the eastern Paris region, and to identify patient- and management-dependent factors affecting treatment outcome.

Methods: This retrospective study focused on all cases of microbiologically confirmed Mycobacterium tuberculosis cases diagnosed in 2004 in the eastern Paris region, one of the areas of France with the highest frequency of TB.

[Follow-up with the assistance of TB-info software of 208 tuberculosis patients who were treated in 2004].

Introduction: The impact of the TB-info software was assessed on the care of patients treated with antituberculosis regimen (ATT).

Methods: Cohort study of patients with tuberculosis who received an ATT in 2004 in two hospitals and five medical centres in Paris. Follow-up was implemented with the TB-info software.

[Tuberculosis in France: new challenges for practitioners].

The need for a national tuberculosis control program was based on disparities of incidence by geographical area or by population group, and differences in tuberculosis control practice. This program was developed within the context of the 2004 public health act that prioritised tuberculosis control with the objective "to stabilise the tuberculosis incidence by reinforcing control strategies in groups and zones at risk". The tuberculosis control programme, launched in July 2007, aims to consolidate the decrease of the tuberculosis incidence and to reduce the inequalities.

Pneumocystis pneumonia: an opportunistic infection occurring in patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis.

Background: Pneumocystis pneumonia usually occurs in immunosuppressed individuals, generally those with underlying T-lymphocyte disorders. Patients with alcoholic liver disease display immune responses consistent with those observed in immunocompromised individuals and alcohol is a potent immunosuppressor. Long-term corticotherapy represents a risk for Pneumocystis pneumonia.

Tuberculosis in European cities: establishment of a patient monitoring system over 10 years in Paris, France.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a persistent public health problem in European cities. France has been unable to report on treatment outcomes until now, and it is not known whether the World Health Organization (WHO) target cure rate of 85% has been met.

Methods: All patients placed under treatment in four hospitals and five out-patient Social Medical Centres in Paris were followed up between 1996 and 2005.

[Tuberculosis control in France--evaluation of practice by a working group of the Société de Pneumologie de Langue Française].

Introduction: The management of tuberculosis has been the subject of renewed interest in France. Recently, the recommendations and the regulations concerning the disease have been updated. However, the resources that are actually available and the processes in place in different French departments are not clearly known.

Outbreak of tuberculosis in a migrants' shelter, Paris, France, 2002.

Setting: An overcrowded 362-bed migrants' shelter in Paris, France.

Objectives: To investigate an outbreak of tuberculosis (TB), to identify a common source of contamination and to prevent further transmission.

Methods: The outbreak was identified by radiographic screening and an active search for undeclared hospital treated cases, completed by strain phenotyping and a search for contact cases.

[Pneumocystis carinii and cytomegalovirus pneumonia after corticosteroid therapy in acute severe alcoholic hepatitis: 2 case reports].

Most cases of infections described after steroid treatment for severe acute alcoholic hepatitis are of bacterial origin. However, the rate of bacterial infections in these patients is not higher than in those who are not treated by steroids. The opportunistic infections are even more rare.