Last Friday I took a PPD test & today found out I tested positive
I really didn't expect to test positive; I consider myself healthy but that doesn't seem to matter. I've got X-Rays to do next & some medicine to take for nearly 1yr to suppress the TB germ from causing problems.
Is this going to create a problem going into the medical field? like nursing?
The antibiotic therapy is
not risk-free. You do not want to take 6 - 9 months of strong
daily antibiotic therapy unless indication of actual TB infection is more substantial than a positive TB skin test.
The first time I tested positive for TB I was like 16 years old through our school. I went to the doctor, my lungs were clear, so he said there is no reason for the antibiotic therapy at this time, I may have merely been exposed to TB enough to develop antibodies but am not actually harboring or infected with TB.
They did another TB skin test just to ensure the first wasn't an anomaly, it was positive again, verified this time instead of just 'suspected'. So I had follow-up X-rays at one month, three months, and six months. Nothing.
I had to get a third TB skin test before I could start my clinicals for college. It was positive again. They wanted me to take the antibiotics, I refused. They were going to deny me entranced into the clinical phase of my program, but after getting a new round of chest X-rays, my medical history, and the statement from my physician, they let me in.
On to medical field job #1: tested me for TB again (#4), despite my telling them I had two verified positive TB skin tests and that the literature warns against giving additional skin tests after a determination of positive has been made because there is an increased risk of severe reaction. Nope, we gotta test you or you can't work here. It was positive again, they wanted me to take the antibiotics, I refused.
That one was a bit tenuous for a while. I thought I was going to get fired a month after getting hired, until the infection control expert for the hospital reviewed my medical history, looked at another round of chest X-rays, and told them I was fine to work.
On to medical field job #2: Same story, they wanted to test me for TB again, I told them the entire story. Nope, we gotta test you or you can't work here. Can't you just call #1. my physician #2. the county health department #3. my former employer (a hospital)??
Nope, we gotta test you again, even though additional skin tests may cause a severe reaction. Surprise! I tested positive again (#5). Went through the same hassle, wanted me to take antibiotics, I refused. This hospital's infection control people consulted on my case, who looked at yet another round of chest X-rays, then told them it was no big deal since I've been testing positive for over 10 years now and acted like the nurse was an idiot for bothering them about my case.
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