Which room type is required for a patient with active tuberculosis?

• A. Private room with standard ventilation
• B. Positive-pressure room to keep air in
• C. Neutral-pressure room with HEPA filter
• D. Negative-pressure room

Answer: (D)

Active tuberculosis spreads through the air, so containment relies on airborne isolation. A negative-pressure room is designed to keep contaminated air from escaping to other parts of the facility. In this setup, the room has lower pressure than surrounding areas, so air flows into the room when doors are opened rather than out into the hall. The air is then exhausted outside or passed through HEPA filtration, often with multiple air changes per hour to reduce airborne particles. This setup, along with proper use of N95 respirators by staff and keeping doors closed, helps prevent transmission.

Other room types don’t provide the same containment for airborne pathogens: a private room with standard ventilation lacks the directional airflow to keep aerosols in, a positive-pressure room pushes air out into the hallway (potentially spreading particles), and a neutral-pressure room with a HEPA filter may reduce some particulates but doesn’t maintain the necessary negative pressure to contain TB.