BCG Vaccinations and the False-positive Effect
SOURCE: Mancuso JD, Mody RM, Olsen CH, et al. Chest 2017;152:282-294.
A placebo-controlled trial of bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccination was performed among Native Americans from Alaska, Arizona, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming from 1935-1947. Varying opinions appear in the literature about the length of time during which prior BCG vaccination influences reactions to tuberculin skin testing. For instance, the CDC suggests that tuberculin cross-reactivity is unlikely to persist longer than 10 years post-BCG vaccination.
A publication by Mancuso et al offers us a 55-year follow-up of 3,151 subjects who received the BCG vacccines inclusive of up to 55 years post-BCG vaccination. In this population, within the first five years of follow-up, > 60% of BCG recipients registered positive tuberculin testing results. Although this number waned somewhat over time (only 33% were positive after 50 years of follow-up), more than half of BCG vaccines remained tuberculin-positive throughout the initial 44 years of follow-up.
Based on this data, clinicians should consider that the BCG vaccination effect could influence tuberculin testing responsivity for an essentially indefinite period.
Clinicians should consider that the bacille Calmette-Guerin vaccination effect could influence tuberculin testing responsivity for an essentially indefinite period.
Subscribe Now for Access
You have reached your article limit for the month. We hope you found our articles both enjoyable and insightful. For information on new subscriptions, product trials, alternative billing arrangements or group and site discounts please call 800-688-2421. We look forward to having you as a long-term member of the Relias Media community.