CONCLUSION
Occupational health professionals are continuously evaluating how to improve surveillance programs and reduce HCWs’ time away from work. Within this context, four advantages IGRAs offer include
• Elimination of a two-step TST for new hires (which requires up to four separate visits)
• No false-positive results caused by previous BCG vaccination or exposure to most nontuberculous mycobacteria
• Significantly improved HCW compliance because screening requires only one visit
• Cost effectiveness.
From an occupational health perspective, these are significant advantages that support the use of IGRAs to screen HCW for TB.
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