Evaluation of Tetanus Seropositivity in Healthcare Professionals by Age and Occupational Groups/Saglik Calisanlarinda Tetanos Seropozitifliginin Yas ve Meslek Gruplarina Gore Degerlendirilmesi

• Published in: KLIMIK dergisi Vol. 35; no. 4; p. 249
• Main Authors: Cam, Gulsum, Ozel, Ayse Serra, Kadanali, Ayten
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: DOC Design and Informatics Co. Ltd 01-12-2022
• Subjects: Analysis; Antibodies; Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; Enzymes; Medical personnel; Planning; Tetanus; Vaccination; Viral antibodies; Afghanistan
• ISSN: 1301-143X
• DOI: 10.36519/kd.2022.4191

Objective: Our country has limited data on protective antibody levels following primary tetanus immunization. In this study, we planned to evaluate the tetanus antibody seroprevalence of healthcare workers in our hospital according to age and occupational groups. Methods: Tetanus antibody levels were determined by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Antibody results were obtained through the hospital operating system, and the tetanus antibody level [greater than or equal to] 0.5 IU/mL was considered seropositive. Results: 77.5% of 2082 healthcare workers were seropositive. According to age groups, the highest seropositivity was between 20-29; the lowest seropositivity was found in individuals over 50 years of age and over (66.3%). We determined that tetanus antibody protection decreased with age (p=0.03). There was no difference between tetanus seropositivity according to occupational groups. Conclusion: Antibody levels of tetanus decrease with age, and protection decreases significantly, especially over 50 years of age. It is important to apply a booster dose every ten years following the primary vaccine schedule in tetanus immunization. Keywords: Healthcare workers, adult vaccination, tetanus seropositivity, vaccine- preventable disease Amac: Ulkemizde primer asi semasini takiben tetanos bagisiklamasi icin surveyans bulunmamaktadir; koruyucu antikor duzeyi ile ilgili veriler de kisitlidir. Bu calismada hastanemizde saglik calisanlarinin tetanos antikor seropozitifliginin yas ve meslek gruplarina gore degerlendirilmesi amaclandi. Yontemler: Tetanos antikor duzeyleri "enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay" (ELISA) yontemiyle belirlenmis olup sonuclar hastane isletim sistemi uzerinden elde edildi; antikor duzeyi [greater than or equal to] 0.5 seropozitif olarak kabul edildi. Bulgular: Toplam 2082 saglik calisaninin seropozitiflik orani %77.5 olarak saptandi. Yas gruplarina gore en yuksek seropozitiflik orani %79.1'le 20-29 yas arasindaki; en dusuk seropozitiflik orani ise %66.3'le 50 yas ve uzerindeki bireylerde tespit edildi. Tetanos antikor koruyuculugunun yas ile azaldigi tespit edildi (p=0.03). Meslek gruplarina gore ise fark saptanmadi. Sonuc: Yas ile antikor duzeyleri gerilemekte olup ozellikle 50 yas ve uzerinde koruyuculuk onemli olcude azalmaktadir. Tetanos bagisiklamasinda primer asi semasini takiben her on yilda bir rapel doz uygulanmasi onem arz etmektedir. Anahtar Sozcukler: Saglik calisanlari, eriskin asilama, tetanos seropozitifligi, asiyla onlenebilir hastalik