American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Jan 2014
Risk Factors and Comorbidities in the Pre-Clinical Stages of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
There is little information about comorbidities and their risk factors in the preclinical stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). ⋯ Premorbid risk factors and comorbid diseases were more prevalent in the preclinical stages of COPD and smokers without COPD. Physical inactivity and smoking were more strongly associated with the presence of comorbidities compared with airflow obstruction. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT 01314807).
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Jan 2014
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyInterferon-γ Release Assays and Tuberculin Skin Testing for Diagnosis of Latent Tuberculosis Infection in Healthcare Workers in the United States.
IFN-γ release assays (IGRAs) are alternatives to tuberculin skin testing (TST) for diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection. Limited data suggest IGRAs may not perform well for serial testing of healthcare workers (HCWs). ⋯ Most conversions among HCWs in low TB incidence settings appear to be false positives, and these occurred six to nine times more frequently with IGRAs than TST; repeat testing of apparent converters is warranted.