Occupational tuberculosis in healthcare workers in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review

ABSTRACT

This article investigates the incidence, prevalence and factors associated with occupational tuberculosis (TB) in healthcare workers (HCWs) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Studies were extracted from MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and SCOPUS databases following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement from inception to the 2^nd of June 2017. Twenty-one studies met the inclusion criteria. The median prevalence of latent TB infection in HCWS was 62% (IQR 22%) and the median incidence of TB disease was 3871/100,000 (IQR 9314/100,000). The risk factors associated with LTBI or active TB disease were workplace, history of contact with TB patients, and longer duration of employment. The findings of this review demonstrate that the risk of acquiring TB among HCWs in SSA is high. This may impact on the recruitment, longevity and retention of HCWs.

KEYWORDS:

• Healthcare workers
• latent tuberculosis infection
• sub-Saharan Africa
• Tuberculosis

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest