Vaccines and Preventable Diseases:
Tuberculosis (TB) Vaccination
BCG is a vaccine for TB. This vaccine is not widely used in the United States, but it is often given to infants and small children in other countries where TB is common. BCG vaccine does not always protect people from getting TB. If you were vaccinated with BCG, you may have a positive reaction to a TB skin test. This reaction may be due to the BCG vaccine itself or due to infection with the TB bacteria. Your positive reaction is more likely to mean you have been infected with TB bacteria...More
What You Should Know:
For Health Professionals:
What You Should Know
- CDC's official Tuberculosis website
- Questions and Answers about TB
- Fact Sheets
- Pictures of Tuberculosis
Warning: Some of these photos are quite graphic. - International Travelers information on TB
Information and updates on risks for travelers, precautions, prevention, etc. - TB in Specific Populations
BCG is a vaccine for TB named after the French scientists who developed it, Calmette and Guérin. BCG is not widely used in the United States, but it is often given to infants and small children in other countries where TB is common. More...
- BCG Vaccine: Fact Sheet
- BCG Vaccine
World Health Organization (WHO)
- Who should not be vaccinated? (see "contraindications" at this link)
- TB and Pregnancy: Fact sheet
For Health Professionals
Clinical Information on TB
- TB Guidelines
- Contraindications (look for "contraindications" at this link)
- More...
Vaccine Recommendations
- Development of new vaccines for tuberculosis: recommendations of the Advisory Council for the Elimination of Tuberculosis (ACET) MMWR 1998; 47 (No. RR-13).
- The role of BCG vaccine in the prevention and control of tuberculosis in the United States: a joint statement by ACET and the ACIP MMWR 1996; 45 (No. RR-4).
References and Resources
- MMWRs on TB
- Fact sheets on TB
- Articles on TB
- Surveillance reports
- Travelers Health: Yellow Book
Information and updates on risks for travelers, precautions, prevention, international certificate of vaccination for yellow fever, pregnancy, etc. - Infection Control in Health-Care Settings
- TB Partnerships
- More...
Materials for Patients
- Pamphlets
- Questions and Answers about TB
- TB: General Information: Fact Sheet
- Materials in Spanish language
- Culturally appropriate patient education materials
Cover six topics —TB disease, TB infection, tuberculin skin testing, TB contact investigation, TB and HIV coinfection, and TB medicine - Preguntas y respuestas sobre la tuberculosis, 2009
TB questions and answers - Tuberculosis - Las vacunas y las enfermedades que previenen
Various materials
- Culturally appropriate patient education materials
- More...
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Content last reviewed on May 13, 2009
Content Source: National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases