In the News

One-Third of People with TB do not Know Their HIV Status

Almost one-third of people living with tuberculosis in the United States are unaware of their HIV status, according to a study that examined data from the National TB Surveillance System from 1993 to 2005 for 49 states and Washington, D.C.  The study was published in the October 26 issue of CDC’s MMWR.  In the United States, after TB exposure and infection, HIV-infected persons who do not receive appropriate treatment progress to TB disease over 5 years at a rate 10 times greater than for persons not infected with HIV.  In 1989, CDC recommended that all TB patients be offered HIV testing and, in 2006, called for routine HIV screening of all TB patients after the patient is notified that testing will be performed, unless the patient declines.

CDC’s analysis indicated 9 percent of TB patients were HIV positive in 2005 and the HIV status for 31 percent of TB patients was unknown.  Reporting of HIV status among TB patients increased from 35 percent in 1993 to 68 percent in 2003.  Groups of TB patients at greater risk for HIV infection included injection-drug users, noninjection-drug users, homeless persons, non-Hispanic blacks, correctional-facility inmates, and alcohol abusers.  The report concluded that increased promotion of routine HIV testing and rapid HIV tests might increase acceptability of testing, which would allow health care providers to know the HIV status of a greater percentage of TB patients and enable them to provide optimal care. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5642a2.htm

HRSA/HAB News, Volume 10, Issue 25, December 6, 2007

Last updated on December 3, 2008