SUPPLIES OF Tb., VACCINE ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN N.Z.

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 41, 21 September 1949, Page 3

SUPPLIES OF Tb., VACCINE ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN N.Z.

Supplies of B.C.G.—the vaccine which is being used overseas to fight tuberculosis—is now in use in New Zealand. Describing this as an important step towards the ultimate goal of complete control of tuberculosis in New Zealand, the New Zealand Medical Journal states that the vaccine is now being made at the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories in Australia, and supplies are being sent across the Tasman by air. The preliminary work in New Zealand was done by the director of tuberculosis in the Department of Health (Dr C. A. Taylor) and the pathologist to the Palmerston North Hospital Board (Dr T. H. Puller). Control of Disease In an article in the journel they say that with a stationary mortality and slightly rising known tuberculosis rate in New Zealand it is desirable that, if further improvement is to be obtained in the control of the disease, active immunisation with B.C.G. should be added to the orthodox methods of epidemiological control' now exercised.

From tuberculin test surveys in nurses and secondary school children in New Zealand it was found that in the under 20 years old group the proportion of tuberculin negative reactors was much higher than in similar groups in the United Kingdom. “This 'means we have older age groups who are liable to contract dangerous primary tuberculosis when they come into contact wiht undiagnosed cases,” the doctors state.

“In the opinin oof the writers artificial protection by controlled B.C.G. vaccination is better than that conferred by the haphazard and uncontrolled natural tuberculosis infection which in massive? dosage is known in many cases to produce progressive disease. B.C.G. vaccination has never been known to produce more than a localised and self-limiting infection.

Available to Maoris “As tuberculosis in the Maori is still a major problem, and because of the difficulties experienced in bringing his living standards up to that of the European, it is considered that B.C.G. vaccination, in addition to all other methods used to prevent the disease, should be offered to this group as soon as possible.”

The article adds that the Department of Health is setting up an organisation to obtain the services of a sufficient number of vaccinators and hopes that the vaccination policy will receive the enthusiastic support of the medical profession.