Contrary to the guidelines for the control of tuberculosis by the World Health Organisation in relation to air travel,a recent study published in the medical journal,The Lancet,has reported there is little risk of tuberculosis transmission through air travel. According to The Lancet,the resources used in tracing and screening air passengers might be better spent addressing other priorities for the control of tuberculosis. A total of 13 studies involving more than 4,328 passengers from six countries were analysed before reaching the conclusion. About 39 studies were assessed and transmission of tuberculosis during commercial air travel were looked at to verify if current international recommendations are justified. According to The Lancet only two studies reported realistic evidence of tuberculosis transmission associated with air travel. From the over 2500 passengers and crew who were screened,only ten were found to have converted from a negative to a positive tuberculin skin reaction. WHO international guidelines for control of tuberculosis in relation to air travel require after a risk assessment tracing of passengers who sat for longer than 8 hours in rows adjacent to people with pulmonary tuberculosis who are smear positive or smear negative. A further recommendation is that all commercial air travel should be prohibited until the person has two consecutive negative sputum smears for drug-susceptible tuberculosis or two consecutive cultures for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. This suggests there is reason to doubt the value of screening air passengers for infection, The Lancet added.
