M. tuberculosis infection among medical students of the Federal University of São Paulo using ELISPOT as a diagnostic tool

Abstract

Tuberculosis is a serious disease, with a high prevalence rate in Brazil. Health care workers are known to be more exposed to infectious diseases, amongst which tuberculosis is included.A recent breakthrough in the detection of latent tuberculosis has been the development of T-cell-bvased interferon-gamma release assays. ELISPOT is one of those assays, and it is more sensitive and more specific than tuberculin skin test (TST). Moreover, and differently from the TST, the use of ELISPOT does not need the return of the patient in 48 to 72 hours, a necessary procedure after the injection of the purified protein derivative (PPD) to assess the intradermoreaction.In this project, we will evaluate the M. tuberculosis infection rate among medical students of the Federal University of São Paulo. Three hundred students of both genders will be assessed: 100 from the 1st and 2nd years, 100 from the 3rd and 4th years and 100 from the 5th and 6th years.All participants will be asked to fill in a questionnaire, perform a TST and collect 10mL of blood to perform an ELISPOT for tuberculosis.The results from this study will establish the tuberculosis infection rate among medical students. They might also indicate the use of ELISPOT to evaluate tuberculosis infection in health care workers in Brazil. (AU)