Risk for latent and active tuberculosis in Germany.

Purpose: Few individuals that are latently infected with M. tuberculosis latent tuberculosis infection(LTBI) progress to active disease. We investigated risk factors for LTBI and active pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in Germany.

Risk Assessment of Tuberculosis in Contacts by IFN-γ Release Assays. A Tuberculosis Network European Trials Group Study.

Rationale: Latent infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis is defined by a positive IFN-γ release assay (IGRA) result in the absence of active tuberculosis. Only few, mostly monocentric studies have evaluated the role of IGRAs to predict the development of tuberculosis in recent contacts in low-incidence countries of tuberculosis.

Objectives: To analyze IGRA results and the effect of preventive chemotherapy on tuberculosis progression rates among recent contacts.

[Experience with the interferon-gamma test at the tuberculosis information centre in Hanover].

The specificity of the new blood test for detecting latent tuberculosis infection (IGRA) is considerably superior to that of the tuberculin skin test. This has been demonstrated by many studies in different populations. The sensitivities of both tests are similar, especially when testing persons with close contacts.

[Spread of a drug-resistant strain of mycobacterium tuberculosis among homeless people in a German city].

Background: Cases of active pulmonary tuberculosis are much more common among homeless people because of their personal risk factors than in the average population; it is assumed that there are about 500 000 homeless people in the Federal Republic of Germany. Several sputum samples were sent from the tuberculosis advice center of the public health office in Hannover to the governmental institute of public health services of Lower Saxony in fall 1996 in order to carry out laboratory tests for mycobacteria. The isolates found revealed an unusual pattern of drug resistance to streptomycin and rifampin.

Stability of IS6110 restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains in actual chains of transmission.

The stability of IS6110 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains in actual transmission chains has been assessed by analyzing the variability of IS6110 RFLP patterns of strains in fingerprint clusters that have been confirmed by classical epidemiological data. Forty susceptible and 35 drug-resistant (including 17 multidrug-resistant) M. tuberculosis strains obtained from 75 patients living in Germany have been analyzed.