Hospital Outbreak of Multidrug-Resistant
Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infections
Factors in Transmission to Staff and HIV-Infected Patients
‘Consuelo Beck Sagué, MD; Samuel W. Dooley, MD; Mary D. Hutton, RN, MPH; Joan Oiten, RN; Alma Breeden, RN,
Jack T. Crawlord, PhD: Arthur E. Pitchenik, MD: Charles Woodley, PhD; George Cauthen, PhO; Wiliam A Jarvis, MD
‘Objective.—To describe transmission of multidrug-resistant (MOR) Mycobacto-
‘ium tuberculosis infection among patients and health care workers (HCWs) in &
Ward and clinic for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients in a
hospital, four studies were conducted.
‘Methiods.—Case patients and control patients were persons who had been
treated in the HIV ward or clinic, whose clinical course was consistent with tuber-
‘culosis and who had at east one positive culture for M tuberculosis between Jan-
vary 1, 1988, and January 31, 1990, resistantto at leastisoniazid and rifampin (case
Patients), or whose isolates were susceptible to all drugs tested (contro patients).
In the frst study, case patients and control patients were compared to identi risk
{factors for MDR tuberculos's. In the second study, inpationt and outpatient days of
MDR tuberoulosis case patients were compared to determine whether acid-fast
bacilus (AFB) smear-positvity or aorosolized pontamiino use was associated with
higher numbers of subsequent MOR tuberculosis cases among exposed patients.
{nthe third study, restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis was performed
‘onavailable MDR and sensitive M tuberculosisisolates. inthe fourth study, skin test
‘conversion rates among HCWs in the HIV ward and clinic were compared with
those of HOWs in another ward, and the strength of the associations betwen skin
test conversions among HCWs on the HIV ward and the number of person-days
that AFB smear-positive case patients and control patients were on this ward was,
estimated.
Results. —Case patients were more likely than control patients tohaave been ex-
posed on the HIV ward or clinic to an AFB smear-positive case patient (P <.001).
Inpatient and outpatient days of MDR tuberculosis case patients were associated
with more subsequent cases of MDR tuberculosis if exposing case patients were
‘smear-positive or if they received aerosolized pentamidine (P=.01). Of 13 MDR
'solates, all had one of two restriction fragment length polymorphism pattems; 10
‘sensitive isolates had restriction fragment length polymorphism pattems that were