BCG vaccination - A vaccine that provides immunity against tuberculosis. BCG is prepared from an artificially weakened strain of bovine (cattle) tubercle bacilli, the microorganisms responsible for the disease.
BCG stands for “bacille Calmette Guérin”, after the 2 Frenchmen who developed the vaccine in 1906. BCG is given to people at risk of tuberculosis and for whom a tuberculin test is negative. These people include health workers, contacts of people who have tuberculosis, and immigrants (including children) from countries with a high rate of tuberculosis.
Infants born to immigrants in this category are immunized, without having a tuberculin test, within a few days of birth. The vaccine is also recommended for children aged 10–14 years for whom the test is negative.
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