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Tuberculin skin testing in intravenous drug users: differences between HIV‐seropositive and HIV‐seronegative subjects
Author(s) -
PORTU JOSÉ J.,
ALDAMIZETXEBARRIA MIKEL,
AGUD JOSÉ M.,
ARÉVALO JOSÉ M.,
ALMARAZ MARía J.,
AYENSA CÁNDIDO
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
addiction biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.445
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1369-1600
pISSN - 1355-6215
DOI - 10.1080/135562102200120460
Subject(s) - medicine , tuberculin , tuberculosis , immunology , lymphocyte , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , drug , pharmacology , pathology
The prevalence of tuberculin skin test reactions among intravenous drug abusers and differences in tuberculin skin test positivity between HIV‐seropositive and HIV‐seronegative subjects were evaluated in a cross‐sectional study of 1131 subjects. They were recruited from a therapeutic community, from those who attended the centre for the treatment of drug addiction and from those who visited for any reason an acute tertiary‐care hospital in Vitoria‐Gasteiz, Basque Country (Spain). All subjects underwent skin testing with purified protein derivative (PPD) tuberculin and testing for HIV antibodies. CD4 + T‐lymphocyte count was determined in HIV‐seropositive individuals. Positive PPD tests were recorded in 35% of drug users who were HIV‐seropositive and in 65% in those who were HIV‐seronegative. In the HIV‐infected group, there was a significant association between results of the tuberculin test and CD4 + T‐lymphocyte count. When the CD4 + T‐lymphocyte count was ≥ 500 cells/mm 3, percentages of positive PPD tests were similar in HIV‐seropositives and HIV‐seronegatives (47% versus 65%) but when the CD4 + count was < 500 cells/mm 3, positive PPD tests occurred in only 21% of HIV‐seropositives. The PPD test showed a decreased sensitivity for detecting tuberculosis infection in HIV‐infected intravenous drug users with CD4 + T‐lymphocyte counts fewer than 500 cells/mm 3.