Community-wide INH treatment of latent TB infection in a BCG-vaccinated population: experience in rural Taiwan.

SETTING

A contiguous four-village bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccinated population (n = 1785) in an aboriginal township in Taiwan with a very high tuberculosis (TB) burden.

OBJECTIVE

To report our experience in this first community-wide effort in Taiwan to treat latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in household contacts of recently diagnosed TB cases.

RESULTS

Overall, 71 LTBI cases (88.8%) completed varying case-specific isoniazid treatment courses, accounting for 4.0% of the affected community (village range 2.4-7.5%, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

LTBI in household contacts was successfully identified and treated in a very high TB burden BCG-vaccinated area in rural Taiwan, complementing standard TB control measures.