[The role of BCG in the prevention of tuberculosis]

Tuberculosis is still a major international public health problem. The role of vaccination with BCG in the prophylaxis of the tuberculosis has been a source of controversy almost since ist introduction in the thirties, because of the disparity of the results regarding efficacy and protection of the several studies that have been done. Currently, everybody seems to agree that in countries with annual infection risk lower than 1%, a massive vaccination campaign with BGC is not profitable. On the other hand, BCG interferes the lecture of the Mantoux intra-dermo-reaction and, thus, it invalidates the most effective test that we have for the diagnosis of the tuberculosis infection. In our country, the battle against tuberculosis is currently focused on the identification and treatment of the tuberculous patient, chemoprophylaxis with contacts of these patients and avoidance of the development of the tuberculosis infection to tuberculosis disease.