Detection of Pneumococcal Carriage in Asymptomatic Healthcare Workers.

IF 3.8 4区医学 Q2 IMMUNOLOGY

Open Forum Infectious Diseases Pub Date : 2025-01-15 eCollection Date: 2025-02-01 DOI:10.1093/ofid/ofaf008

Pari Waghela, Raechel Davis, Melissa Campbell, Rupak Datta, Maikel S Hislop, Noel J Vega, Loren Wurst, Devyn Yolda-Carr, Luke Couch, Michael Hernandez, Lindsay R Grant, Ronika Alexander-Parrish, Adriano Arguedas, Bradford D Gessner, Richard A Martinello, Daniel M Weinberger, Anne L Wyllie

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workers are at increased risk of exposure to respiratory pathogens including Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus). While little asymptomatic carriage has been reported in young-to-middle-aged adults, this may be due to nonsensitive diagnostic methods. The aim of the current study was to investigate the rates of pneumococcal carriage in a large cohort of healthcare workers, using saliva as a respiratory specimen.

Methods: We evaluated pneumococcal carriage in convenience samples of saliva, self-collected from asymptomatic healthcare workers (Connecticut, USA) who were testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from 30 March to 11 June 2020. DNA extracted from the culture-enriched saliva was later tested using quantitative polymerase chain reaction for piaB, lytA, and serotype. Saliva samples were considered positive for pneumococcus when the piaB cycle threshold value was <40.

Results: Study participants were 22-74 years old (mean age, 38.5 years), 75% female, 75% white, and with occupations including registered nurses (48%), medical doctors (23%), and patient care assistants (5%). Overall, 138 of 1241 samples (11%) from 86 of 392 individuals (21%) tested piaB positive at some point during the 4-month study period, with 28 (33%) colonized individuals positive at multiple time points. Carriers reflected the overall study population. No significant demographic characteristics were associated with detection of pneumococcus. Colonized individuals primarily carried serotypes 19F (25.6%) and 3 (12.8%).

Conclusions: During a period of mandatory masking, we identified a cumulative pneumococcal carriage prevalence of 21% among healthcare workers. This study highlights that healthcare workers may act as unrecognized reservoirs of pneumococcus in the population. Despite long-standing pediatric immunization programs, vaccine-targeted serotypes continue to be prevalent among the adult population.

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来源期刊

Open Forum Infectious Diseases Medicine-Neurology (clinical)

CiteScore

6.70

自引率

4.80%

发文量

630

审稿时长

9 weeks

期刊介绍： Open Forum Infectious Diseases provides a global forum for the publication of clinical, translational, and basic research findings in a fully open access, online journal environment. The journal reflects the broad diversity of the field of infectious diseases, and focuses on the intersection of biomedical science and clinical practice, with a particular emphasis on knowledge that holds the potential to improve patient care in populations around the world. Fully peer-reviewed, OFID supports the international community of infectious diseases experts by providing a venue for articles that further the understanding of all aspects of infectious diseases.