Pulmonary tuberculosis, a latent risk for health workers as a public health problem

Abstract

The pulmonary tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, whose reservoir is man and its transmission mechanism is through the "flugge" emitted by  infected people when coughing or sneezing, affects the respiratory tract and if not detected and treated in a timely manner can lead the patient to death. At the international, national and state levels, strategies have  been created for the eradication of this disease, without success in breaking the chain of transmission,  preventing at least its elimination. Tuberculosis demands attention from the health team, representing a  latent risk for personnel in direct contact with the patient without the use of protective measures. Currently, it represents a reemergent problem of Public Health in Mexico, given that the incidence of this condition is  on the rise. Each year around 15,000 new cases are detected and more than 2,000 deaths due to this  cause, mainly affects men, representing 60% of cases by gender. The latent risk for health personnel in  Mexico is not sufficiently documented despite representing an important area of opportunity in its  dissemination and control, which implies lamentably negative results.