this is my 4th time having a ppd test is it harmful?!

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If you have had a documented positive PPD test in the past, you should NOT get any more. They will likely continue to be positive. At some point you should have been recommended to get treatment for latent TB. After that, routine chest x-rays are not recommended either (i.e .for employment); what is recommended is that you be screened for symptoms of TB and further tests done if you have any symptoms. However some employers make a TB screen mandatory for new employment, in which case you would go straight to chest x-ray. But employers/facilities where you volunteer should not be making annual chest x-rays a requirement. If you need assistance sorting this out with the facility, see if your local health department will help you.

In the case of someone who had never had a positive PPD test, additional tests are not harmful, no matter how many. They will not cause it to turn positive.

It is unlikely the PPD caused your current symptoms, you probably just have a cold. The worst reaction I've seen in someone who has a history of positive PPDs who received another one unintentionally was a severe skin reaction where the injection site became severely swollen and red about the size of a coffee-cup. If your last positve PPD was several years ago and you have been treated for it, then usually your PPD will stop being positive, and it will be safe to get another one.

I am a physician with over 18 years of experience.