The transmission of tuberculosis in planes

The regulars of long-haul flights do not like to travel next to someone who coughs during the entire trip. They fear being contaminated. Especially with tuberculosis.

Yet a review of the literature published inThe Lancet Infectious Diseases believes that the chances of tuberculosis transmission during air travel are limited. It also puts in doubt the screening recommendations for those who traveled by plane for more than eight hours on the same level with a patient suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis. It also puts in doubt calls for the prohibition of all commercial flights to infectious TB.

In practice, simply inhale some bacilli from a patient whose lungs are affected is sufficient to get infected. According to WHO, a new infection by this bacillus appear every second worldwide. One third of the population of the Earth, over 30% living in South-Eastern Asia, is now infected with TB.

To better assess the risk on airplanes, Ibrahim Abubakar, University of East Anglia in Norwich (UK), analyzed 13 studies involving members of the crew or passengers after exposure in an airplane to a person with tuberculosis.

Only two investigations have provided convincing evidence of transmission of tuberculosis. Among more than 2761 passengers and crew members screened, only 10 have had a test to intradermal tuberculin which became positive.

And so far, no cases of active TB as a result of transmission via simple inhale has been reported. So there is "a reason to doubt the value of the active screening of passengers on planes who met Mycobacterium tuberculosis," wrote Ibrahim Abubakar.

In addition it is very difficult to find contacts in aircraft because of the lack of information on passengers, the complexity of contact various national authorities and the low response rate among those aware of a risk described as limited.

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