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Volume 14, Number 9—September 2008

Perspective

Preventing and Controlling Emerging and Reemerging Transmissible Diseases in the Homeless

Sékéné Badiaga, Didier Raoult, and Philippe BrouquiComments to Author 
Author affiliations: Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France (S. Badiaga, D. Raoult, P. Brouqui); Université de la Méditerranée, Marseille, France (D. Raoult, P. Brouqui)

Main Article

Table 2

Interventions to control and prevent the spread of infections in the homeless*

Infections and specific interventions References
HIV, HCV, HBV infections
Tailored education of targeted population on reducing infection risk with provision of free condoms (16,19)
Syringe prescription program and needle exchange programs
 (20)
HBV, HAV infections
HBV accelerated immunization (21,22)
HAV immunization
 (8)
Tuberculosis
Shelter based-intervention with chest radiograph screening, sputum culture, tuberculin skin testing (17,24,25,27)
Genotyping (7,23)
Contact investigation through homeless shelters
 (7,23)
Influenza, diphtheria, Streptococcus pneumoniae infections
Systematic vaccination
Scabies, body louse infestation
Providing facilities for bathing and laundry; insecticide application to bedding in shelters (5,34,35)
Ivermectin for scabies, body louse, and ectoparasite-based pruritus
 (18,34)
Louse-borne diseases
Doxycycline and gentamicin for persons with chronic Bartonella quintana bacteremia (39)
Doxycycline for persons with epidemic typhus (32)

*HCV, hepatitis C virus; HBV, hepatitis B virus; HAV, hepatitis A virus.

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Page updated: October 02, 2012
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