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Measuring ventilation and modelling M. tuberculosis transmission in indoor congregate settings, rural KwaZulu-Natal

(2016) Measuring ventilation and modelling M. tuberculosis transmission in indoor congregate settings, rural KwaZulu-Natal. The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease , 20 (9) pp. 1155-1161. 10.5588/ijtld.16.0085. Green open access

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Abstract

SETTING: Molecular epidemiology suggests that most Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission in high-burden settings occurs outside the home. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the risk of M. tuberculosis transmission inside public buildings in a high TB burden community in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. DESIGN: Carbon dioxide (CO2) sensors were placed inside eight public buildings. Measurements were used with observations of occupancy to estimate infection risk using an adaptation of the Wells-Riley equation. Ventilation modelling using CONTAM was used to examine the impact of low-cost retrofits on transmission in a health clinic. RESULTS: Measurements indicate that infection risk in the church, classroom and clinic waiting room would be high with typical ventilation, occupancy levels and visit durations. For example, we estimated that health care workers in a clinic waiting room had a 16.9–24.5% annual risk of M. tuberculosis infection. Modelling results indicate that the simple addition of two new windows allowing for cross-ventilation, at a cost of US$330, would reduce the annual risk to health care workers by 57%. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that public buildings in this community have a range of ventilation and occupancy characteristics that may influence transmission risks. Simple retrofits may result in dramatic reductions in M. tuberculosis transmission, and intervention studies should therefore be considered.

Type: Article
Title: Measuring ventilation and modelling M. tuberculosis transmission in indoor congregate settings, rural KwaZulu-Natal
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.5588/ijtld.16.0085
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.5588/ijtld.16.0085
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2016 Taylor et al. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Keywords: South Africa; Wells-Riley equation; infection control
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute for Global Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute for Global Health > Infection and Population Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > Bartlett School Env, Energy and Resources
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1507756
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