V. NIOSH Recommendations for Personal Respiratory Protection
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Table 3 (continued)—NIOSH Recommendations for Minimal Acceptable Personal Respiratory Protection for Health-Care-Facility Workers Potentially Exposed to Tuberculosis
| Potential for Aerosolization of Droplet Nuclei |
Locations and Procedures Where Confirmed or Potential Tuberculosis Transmitters Are Present or Potentially Present (see note 1) |
Minimal Acceptable Personal Respiratory Protection |
| High | Administration of aerosolized pentamidine (and other aerosols) Any cough-inducing procedure Autopsy rooms, aerosol-generating procedures (e.g., irrigating, sawing) Bronchoscopy procedures Endotracheal intubation/suctioning procedures Sputum induction |
POSITIVE PRESSURE,
AIRLINE, HALFMASK RESPIRATORS USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH AN EFFECTIVE RESPIRATORY PROTECTION PROGRAM |
| Medium | AFB isolation rooms Intensive-care units, routine procedures Laboratories (see note 2) Non-cough-inducting procedures Operating rooms |
POWERED,
HEPA-FILTER, HALFMASK RESPIRATORS USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH AN EFFECTIVE RESPIRATORY PROTECTION PROGRAM |
| Indeterminant (see note 3) |
Admitting areas Emergency rooms (including waiting areas) Hallways Transport of patients Waiting areas (inpatient and outpatient) |
POSSIBILITY OF EXPOSURE POWERED, |
NO POSSIBILITY OF EXPOSURE NO RESPIRATOR NEEDED |
Note 1—As identified with an Admission Screening Plan as discussed in section V.B starting on page 37.
Note 2—Respirators are not indicated when effective infectious-source controls are in use such as given in (44).
Note 3—Whether or not there is a risk depends on whether or not there is a possibility of exposure to a person with infectious tuberculosis.
