Moje-Tapang, Clarizze Francesca C. Balanag, Vincent M. Idolor, Luisito Salvador, Arlene Marie B. text monographic eng

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OBJECTIVE: To determine the tuberculin skin test conversion rate among new employees at the Lung Center of the Philippines. DESIGN: Descriptive with analytic component SETTING: Employees' Clinic Lung Center of the Philippines STUDY SUBJECTS: All newly hired employees METHOD: Two hundred thirty-seven subjects were administered 5 TU of PPD on the volar surface of the forearm. Results were interpreted after 72 hours and recorded. Subjects with a reading of less than 8mm in duration had a repeat testing after 2 weeks. Subsequent testing was done for those who remain to have a negative tuberculin skin test result at the end of 3-and 6-months. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-seven subjects completed the study after 72 hours from initial Tuberculin skin test (TST), 150 subjects were PPD-positive (63.3%) while those PPD-negative were 87 or 36.7%. A repeat TST was done after 2 weeks on the 87 subjects who were PPD-negative after the initial TST. Among these, 67 or 77% remained PPD-negative, 14 or 16.1% were PPD-positive while 67 subjects, 48 or 72 converted to PPD-positive and 18 or 27% remained PPD-negative. At the end of 6 months, of the remaining 18 subjects, 14 or 77.8% became PPD-positive while only 1 or 5.6% was PPD-negative. Therefore, out of the 67 subjects who were PPD-negative initially 72% converted after 3 months and this further increased to 92.5% at 6 months. CONCLUSION: There is a very high risk of getting a tuberculin infection upon exposure to the hospital environment. Clarizze Francesca C. Moje-Tapang [and three others] The Filipino Family Physician, 2011 49 (4) pages 150-158 Tuberculin Test 210405 20210405153710.0 D0001J000407