Rajagopalan S, Yoshikawa T T
Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, King-Drew Medical Center, Los Angeles, California 90059, USA.
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2000 Sep;21(9):611-5. doi: 10.1086/501816.
The geriatric population represents the largest reservoir of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in developed nations, including the United States. Tuberculosis (TB) case rates in the United States are highest for this age group compared with other age categories. The subtle clinical manifestations of TB in the elderly often can pose potential diagnostic dilemmas and therapeutic challenges, resulting in increased morbidity and mortality in this age group; this treatable infection unfortunately often is detected only at autopsy. Compared with their community-dwelling counterparts, the institutionalized elderly are at a greater risk both for reactivation of latent TB and for the acquisition of new TB infection. Prevention and control of TB in facilities providing long-term care to the elderly thus cannot be overemphasized.
在包括美国在内的发达国家，老年人群是结核分枝杆菌感染的最大群体。在美国，该年龄组的结核病发病率高于其他年龄类别。老年人结核病的临床表现往往较为隐匿，常常会带来潜在的诊断难题和治疗挑战，导致该年龄组的发病率和死亡率增加；不幸的是，这种可治疗的感染往往仅在尸检时才被发现。与居住在社区的老年人相比，住在养老院的老年人发生潜伏性结核再激活和获得新的结核感染的风险更大。因此，在为老年人提供长期护理的机构中，结核病的预防和控制再怎么强调都不为过。
