Skip to main content
PMC home page
American Journal of Public Health logoLink to American Journal of Public Health
. 1998 Feb;88(2):223–226. doi: 10.2105/ajph.88.2.223

Screening for tuberculosis in jail and clinic follow-up after release.

J P Tulsky 1, M C White 1, C Dawson 1, T M Hoynes 1, J Goldenson 1, G Schecter 1
PMCID: PMC1508204  PMID: 9491011

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to describe tuberculosis (TB) screening and preventive therapy in the San Francisco County Jail and to measure the follow-up rate at the public health department TB clinic. METHODS: The records of male inmates screened for 6 months in 1994 were reviewed. Those prescribed isoniazid and released before therapy ended were matched with TB clinic records. Inmates were considered to have followed up if they came to the TB clinic within 1 month of release. RESULTS: Of 3352 inmates screened, 553 (16.5%) reported a prior positive skin test, and 330 (26.9%) of 1229 tests placed and read were positive. Of those with positive tests, 151 (45.8%) began isoniazid. Most of the inmates were foreign-born Hispanics (80.8%). Ninety-three (61.6%) inmates were released before completion, after an average of 68.5 days. Three (3.2%) went to the TB clinic within a month. CONCLUSIONS: Jail represents an important screening site for TB, but care is not continued after release. Strategies are needed to enhance the continuity of isoniazid preventive care.

Full text

PDF
223

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Alcabes P., Vossenas P., Cohen R., Braslow C., Michaels D., Zoloth S. Compliance with isoniazid prophylaxis in jail. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1989 Nov;140(5):1194–1197. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/140.5.1194. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bellin E. Y., Fletcher D. D., Safyer S. M. Association of tuberculosis infection with increased time in or admission to the New York City jail system. JAMA. 1993 May 5;269(17):2228–2231. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bellin E., Fletcher D., Safyer S. Abnormal chest x-rays in intravenous drug users: implications for tuberculosis screening programs. Am J Public Health. 1993 May;83(5):698–700. doi: 10.2105/ajph.83.5.698. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Berkman A. Prison health: the breaking point. Am J Public Health. 1995 Dec;85(12):1616–1618. doi: 10.2105/ajph.85.12.1616. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Blower S. M., McLean A. R., Porco T. C., Small P. M., Hopewell P. C., Sanchez M. A., Moss A. R. The intrinsic transmission dynamics of tuberculosis epidemics. Nat Med. 1995 Aug;1(8):815–821. doi: 10.1038/nm0895-815. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Busby J. Texas Department of Health will seek mandatory TB screening in jails. Tex Med. 1991 Feb;87(2):52–53. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Glaser J. B., Greifinger R. B. Correctional health care: a public health opportunity. Ann Intern Med. 1993 Jan 15;118(2):139–145. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-118-2-199301150-00010. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Hutton M. D., Cauthen G. M., Bloch A. B. Results of a 29-state survey of tuberculosis in nursing homes and correctional facilities. Public Health Rep. 1993 May-Jun;108(3):305–314. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. King L., Geis G. Tuberculosis transmission in a large urban jail. JAMA. 1977 Feb 21;237(8):791–792. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Martín V., Gonzalez P., Caylá J. A., Mirabent J., Cañellas J., Pina J. M., Miret P. Case-finding of pulmonary tuberculosis on admission to a penitentiary centre. Tuber Lung Dis. 1994 Feb;75(1):49–53. doi: 10.1016/0962-8479(94)90102-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. McKenna M. T., McCray E., Onorato I. The epidemiology of tuberculosis among foreign-born persons in the United States, 1986 to 1993. N Engl J Med. 1995 Apr 20;332(16):1071–1076. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199504203321606. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Nardell E. A. Tuberculosis in homeless, residential care facilities, prisons, nursing homes, and other close communities. Semin Respir Infect. 1989 Sep;4(3):206–215. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Pelletier A. R., DiFerdinando G. T., Jr, Greenberg A. J., Sosin D. M., Jones W. D., Jr, Bloch A. B., Woodley C. L. Tuberculosis in a correctional facility. Arch Intern Med. 1993 Dec 13;153(23):2692–2695. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Puisis M., Feinglass J., Lidow E., Mansour M. Radiographic screening for tuberculosis in a large urban county jail. Public Health Rep. 1996 Jul-Aug;111(4):330–334. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Stead W. W. Special problems in tuberculosis. Tuberculosis in the elderly and in residents of nursing homes, correctional facilities, long-term care hospitals, mental hospitals, shelters for the homeless, and jails. Clin Chest Med. 1989 Sep;10(3):397–405. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Thorburn K. M. Health care in correctional facilities. West J Med. 1995 Dec;163(6):560–564. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Valway S. E., Richards S. B., Kovacovich J., Greifinger R. B., Crawford J. T., Dooley S. W. Outbreak of multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis in a New York State prison, 1991. Am J Epidemiol. 1994 Jul 15;140(2):113–122. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a117222. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from American Journal of Public Health are provided here courtesy of American Public Health Association

RESOURCES