Healthcare worker occupation and immune response to Pneumocystis jirovecii

Emerg Infect Dis. 2009 Oct;15(10):1590-7. doi: 10.3201/eid1510.090207.

Abstract

The reservoir and mode of transmission of Pneumocystis jirovecii remain uncertain. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 126 San Francisco General Hospital staff in clinical (n = 103) and nonclinical (n = 23) occupations to assess whether occupational exposure was associated with immune responses to P. jirovecii. We examined antibody levels by ELISA for 3 overlapping fragments that span the P. jirovecii major surface glycoprotein (Msg): MsgA, MsgB, and MsgC1. Clinical occupation participants had higher geometric mean antibody levels to MsgC1 than did nonclinical occupation participants (21.1 vs. 8.2, p = 0.004); clinical occupation was an independent predictor of higher MsgC1 antibody levels (parameter estimate = 0.89, 95% confidence interval 0.29-1.48, p = 0.003). In contrast, occupation was not significantly associated with antibody responses to either MsgA or MsgB. Healthcare workers may have occupational exposure to P. jirovecii. Humans may be a reservoir for P. jirovecii and may transmit it from person to person.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Antibodies, Fungal / immunology*
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Fungal Proteins / immunology
  • Health Personnel*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Occupational Exposure*
  • Pneumocystis Infections / epidemiology*
  • Pneumocystis Infections / immunology*
  • Pneumocystis carinii / immunology*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Antibodies, Fungal
  • Fungal Proteins