Transmission ofMycobacterium tuberculosisfrom a Cadaver to an Embalmer
Open Access
- 27 January 2000
- journal article
- case report
- Published by Massachusetts Medical Society in New England Journal of Medicine
- Vol. 342 (4), 246-248
- https://doi.org/10.1056/nejm200001273420404
Abstract
The risk of acquiring tuberculosis varies according to occupation and is high among funeral-home workers.1 Embalmers are at particularly high risk for reactivity on tuberculin skin testing.2 The increased risk may be due to exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis during the embalming process, which involves the aspiration of blood and other body fluids from the cadaver, resulting in the generation of potentially infectious aerosols. To our knowledge, however, the transmission of M. tuberculosis from a cadaver to an embalmer, with the subsequent development of active tuberculosis, has not been described.This publication has 8 references indexed in Scilit:
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