Should we draw titers on healthcare workers after varicella vaccination to verify immunity?
Routine serologic testing for varicella immunity after administration of two doses of vaccine is not considered necessary because 99% of persons become seropositive after the second dose. Seroconversion, however, does not always result in full protection against disease. Institutional guidelines are needed for management of exposed vaccinees who do not have detectable antibody and for those who develop clinical varicella. A potentially effective strategy to identify persons who remain at risk for varicella is to test vaccinated persons for serologic evidence of immunity immediately after they are exposed to VZV. Prompt, sensitive, and specific serologic results can be obtained at reasonable cost with a commercially available latex agglutination (LA) test. Many other methods also have been used to detect antibody to VZV. The LA test can be completed in 15 minutes. Persons with detectable antibody are unlikely to become infected with varicella. Persons who do not have detectable antibody
Related Questions
- Regarding vaccination of healthcare workers, if a person develops a rash after receiving varicella vaccine, are they contagious? If so, how long would they be considered contagious?
- What does ACIP recommend for healthcare workers who are still seronegative after two doses of varicella vaccine?
- Should we draw titers on healthcare workers after varicella vaccination to verify immunity?
