Integrating tuberculosis and HIV services

Abstract

The tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodefciency virus (HIV) epidemics pose huge challenges to health services in South Africa. People with HIV infection are at signifcantly higher risk of both TB infection and progression to active disease. There is, thus, a need to implement adequate infection control policies and processes to reduce transmission of TB from patient to patient, from healthcare worker to patient, and from patient to healthcare worker. The purpose of this article is to review what is known about the risks of TB transmission particularly in the setting of HIV co-infection, and to describe possible infection control interventions.