WAR ON TUBERCULOSIS

Chronicle (Levin), 11 August 1949, Page 6

WAR ON TUBERCULOSIS

Press Association) • •

New Vaccine For Dominion

(Per

WELLINGTON, August 10. Supplies of B.C.G. — the vaecine which is being used overseas to • fight tubereulosis — will soon be in New Zealand.. Describing tliis as an important step towards the ultimate goal of ultimate control of tubereulosis in New Zealand, the New Zealand Medieal Journa) states that the vaecine is now being made at the Commonwealtli Serurn Laboratories in Australia, and supplies will be sent aeross the Tasman by air. The preliminary work in New Zea°land was done by the director of tubereulosis in the Department of Health (Dr. C. A. Taylor) and the pathologist to the Palmerston North HospitaJ Board (Dr. T. H. Pullar). In an artiele in the journal they say that with a stationary mortality and slightly rising known tubereulosis 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. Erom tuberculin test survevs in nurses and secondary school children in New Zea land it ivas found that in the under 20 years old group the proportion of tuberculin negative reactors was much higher than in siinilar groups in the United Kingdom. Older People Too. "This means we have older ' age groups who are liable to contaet dangerous primary tubereulosis when they come into contaet with undiagnosed cases, " the doetors state. "As the growing body of world opinion considers that the proeedure of B.C.G. vaceination confers a measure of protection against tubereulosis even up to six years afterwards, it would seem essential that this protection should not be denied to those groups of our people. ' ' In the opinion of the writers artihcial protection ;by eontrolled B.C.G. vaceination is better than that eonferred by the haphazard and uncontrolled natural tubereulosis infeetion whicli in massive dosage is known in many cases to produce progressive 'disease. B.C.G. vaceination has never been known to produce more than a-localised and selflimiting infeetion. "As tubereulosis in the Maori is still a major problem, and because o'f the difficulties experienced in bringing his living standards up to that of the European, it is considered that B.C.G. vaceination, in addition . to all other ' metheds used to prevent the disease, should be ofxered to this group as soon as possible." The artiele adds that the Department of Health is setting up an organisatiou to obtain the services of a sufficient numbef of vaecinators and hopes that the vaceination poliey will receive the enthusiastm support of the medicaJ profession. The lirst use of the vaecine in Nev Zealand was at the Palmerston Nortl Hospital, whicli was interested in anj measure to protect the nursing staf from tubereulosis infeetion. A group o: 26 nurses was vaecinated in -Januarj this year and a further 20 last Mareh