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Tuberculosis: medical students at risk

D Wilkins1, A J Woolcock, Y E Cossart

  • 1Student Health Services, University of Sydney, NSW.

The Medical Journal of Australia
|April 4, 1994
PubMed
Summary

A 1979 tuberculosis outbreak in medical students highlights the risk of nosocomial infections. This incident underscores the vulnerability of healthcare students to airborne pathogens and the ongoing threat of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.

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Area of Science:

  • Medicine
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Occupational Health

Background:

  • A 1979 tuberculosis outbreak occurred among medical students at the University of Sydney.
  • Eight of 35 Mantoux-negative students became infected after attending an autopsy of a patient with unsuspected active tuberculosis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To highlight the relevance of historical tuberculosis studies to current challenges.
  • To emphasize the vulnerability of healthcare students to airborne and inoculation-related infections.
  • To underscore the emerging threat of nosocomial tuberculosis.

Main Methods:

  • Review and update of a 1979 report on a tuberculosis outbreak.
  • Analysis of infection transmission in a university autopsy setting.
  • Consideration of historical and current tuberculosis epidemiology and control.

Main Results:

  • One student developed clinical tuberculosis, and seven others were infected following autopsy exposure.
  • The incident supported the University's then-controversial policy of recommending BCG vaccination for medical and dental students.
  • The report was initially withheld to protect student privacy and institutional confidence in infection control.

Conclusions:

  • Tuberculosis poses an emerging nosocomial risk, particularly for healthcare students.
  • The rise of antibiotic-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis exacerbates occupational risks for healthcare workers.
  • Historical data from the 1930s and 1940s remains relevant to understanding and preventing contemporary tuberculosis transmission.

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