Using Syndromic Surveillance to Investigate Tattoo-related Skin Infections in NYC

Authors

  • Mollie Kotzen Bureau of Communicable Disease, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY, United States; New York University, New York City, NY, United States
  • Robert Mathes Bureau of Communicable Disease, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY, United States
  • Lillian Lee Bureau of Communicable Disease, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY, United States
  • Don Weiss Bureau of Communicable Disease, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY, United States

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v6i1.5196

Abstract

Mycobacterium chelonae is not reportable in NYC. To investigate tattoo-associated M. chelonae infections, we used NYC ED syndromic surveillance for case finding and trend analysis. No significant trend emerged from 5 years of ED surveillance data. Thirty-one ED visits for tattoo complications were identified in the five-month period preceding a reported case of M. chelonae. Fourteen patients were interviewed, and none were suspected or confirmed with M. chelonae. Syndromic surveillance is an option for case finding when the event under surveillance is described by a unique and specific word or phrase, such as tattoo.

Author Biography

Mollie Kotzen, Bureau of Communicable Disease, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY, United States; New York University, New York City, NY, United States

Mollie Kotzen is a second-year student in New York University's Master of Public Health Program.

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Published

2014-03-09

How to Cite

Kotzen, M., Mathes, R., Lee, L., & Weiss, D. (2014). Using Syndromic Surveillance to Investigate Tattoo-related Skin Infections in NYC. Online Journal of Public Health Informatics, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v6i1.5196

Issue

Section

Oral Presentations