Nosocomial Transmission of Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in a Rural Hospital in South Africa

2012140 citationsJournal Articlebronze Open Access

Authors

Neel R. Gandhi · Emory University

Darren Weissman · Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Prashini Moodley · University of KwaZulu-Natal

Melissa Ramathal · University of KwaZulu-Natal

Inga Elson · University of KwaZulu-Natal

Barry N. Kreiswirth · International Center for Public Health

Barun Mathema

Abstract

The XDR-tuberculosis epidemic in Tugela Ferry, South Africa, has been highly clonal. However, the epidemic is not the result of a point-source outbreak; rather, a high degree of interconnectedness allowed multiple generations of nosocomial transmission. Similar to the outbreaks of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in the 1990s, poor infection control, delayed diagnosis, and a high HIV prevalence facilitated transmission. Important lessons from those outbreaks must be applied to stem further expansion of this epidemic.

Topics & Keywords

Tuberculosis Research and Epidemiology Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia detection and treatment Infectious Diseases and Tuberculosis

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Good health and well-being

Publication Details

Published in: The Journal of Infectious Diseases

Volume 207, Issue 1, pp. 9-17

DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jis631

Field-Weighted Citation Impact: 5.79