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VIDEO: TB prevention critical among people with HIV
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SEATTLE — Infectious Disease News spoke with Amita Gupta, MD, associate professor of infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, about tuberculosis prevention among people living with HIV.
“Each year, there are 10 million cases of tuberculosis, and it’s now the number infectious disease killer in the world,” Gupta says.
The disease burden is high among people with HIV, with 920,000 cases of the disease reported in this population.
Gupta highlights ART and tuberculosis preventative therapy as critical components in the fight against TB, and she reminds clinicians — especially those working in high burden areas — that a test of infection, such as a tuberculin skin test or an interferon-gamma release assay, is not required prior to initiating preventive TB therapy.
“Remember, find your cases, treat them rapidly, and use TB preventive therapy whenever possible in high TB burden settings,” Gupta added.
Disclosure: Gupta reports that her spouse receives consulting or advisor fees from Biogen, Roche, Genentech, AveXis, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, PTC Therapeutics, Cytokinetics and Pfizer.