Community health care workers in South Africa are at increased risk for tuberculosis.

To the Editor: High rates of tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in sub-Saharan Africa pose a serious threat to health care systems and health care workers (HCWs). Studies in South Africa1 and Ethiopia2 have indicated that HCWs have an increased risk of TB disease compared with the general population. The risk for TB disease is even higher among HCWs co-infected with HIV. Studies from South Africa found an HIV prevalence among HCWs of 15.7% in 4 provinces in 20023 and of 11.5% in 2 hospitals in Gauteng in 2005.4