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[Comparative study of BCG vaccines: Polish, Danish and Japanese]
I Szczuka1, J Leowski, M Miller
1Zakład Epidemiologii i Organizacji Walki z Gruźlica, Instytutu Gruźlicy i Chorób Płuc w Warszawie.
Insights
A comparative study of Polish, Danish, and Japanese BCG vaccines in 1111 Polish children found all vaccines induced strong tuberculin reactions. No significant differences were observed between the Polish vaccine and the other two.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Public Health
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination is crucial for tuberculosis prevention.
- Comparative efficacy studies of different BCG vaccine strains are essential for optimizing public health strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the immunogenicity of Polish, Danish, and Japanese BCG vaccine strains.
- To evaluate post-vaccination tuberculin reactions in 12-year-old children.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving 1111 school children aged 12 years in Poland.
- Pre-vaccination tuberculin testing using 2 TU tuberculin RT-23 with Tween 80.
- Assessment of post-vaccination tuberculin reactions 10 weeks after administration of Polish, Danish, or Japanese BCG vaccines.
Main Results:
- All three BCG vaccines induced high levels of post-vaccination tuberculin reactions, with over 30% of children showing reactions exceeding 15 mm.
- Mean post-vaccination reactions were 14.2 mm (Polish), 13.7 mm (Danish), and 14.9 mm (Japanese).
- A statistically significant difference was found between Danish and Japanese vaccines, but not between the Polish vaccine and the other two. Larger post-vaccination indurations correlated with larger BCG scar diameters.
Conclusions:
- The Polish, Danish, and Japanese BCG vaccines demonstrate comparable immunogenicity in inducing tuberculin sensitivity in 12-year-old children.
- The findings support the effectiveness of the Polish BCG vaccine relative to the Danish and Japanese strains.
- Further research may explore long-term protective efficacy and scar size correlation.
Abstract:
In a group of 1111 school children aged 12 years from two selected town in Poland (Rzeszów and Ostrołeka) a comparative study of three BCG vaccines was performed, the Polish, the Danish, and the Japanese. Tests for viability of the vaccines gave the following results: for the Polish vaccine 17680000 culturable particles in 1 mg; the Danish--12060000, and the Japanese--43540000 respectively Children eligible for vaccination were selected on the basis of prevaccination tuberculin testing with 2 TU tuberculin RT-23 with Tween 80. All the three vaccines gave high level of postvaccination tuberculin reactions measured after 10 weeks. In more than 30% of children these reactions were higher than 15 mm. The mean postvaccination reactions after the Polish vaccine was 14.2 mm (s.d.3.7), after the Danish--13.7 mm (s.d.3.9), and after the Japanese 14.9 mm(s.d.3.0). The difference between the Danish and the Japanese vaccines was statistically significant, but between the Polish and the other two vaccines was not. It was also formed that children with larger postvaccination tuberculin indurations had larger diameter of preview BCG scars.
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