"Decrease of Specific and Total IgE Levels in Allergic Patients After BCG Vaccination"
Immunization Newsbriefs (c) Copyright
Information Inc., Bethesda, MD. Brought to you by the National Network for
Immunization Information (NNii). Visit NNii's new website at
http://www.immunizationinfo.org.
Vaccination with bacillus of Calmette and Guerin
(BCG) for the prevention of tuberculosis can cause symptoms that resemble
mycobacterial infection. Children who have experienced tuberculin conversion
following BCG vaccination appear to be more likely to lose their atopic
symptoms. In addition, allergic response and airway hyperreactivity inhibitions
have been noted in animal experiments. Researchers sought to determine how
allergic patients react serologically to BCG vaccination. Twenty volunteers
with a history of allergic rhinitis opted for the study. All were required to
obtain BCG vaccination under Italian law. The scientists measured serum total
IgE levels and serum allergen-specific IgE levels for each patient before BCG
vaccination and four months after the dosing. The results indicated that total
IgE and allergen-specific IgE levels were far lower after vaccination with BCG
than prior to the treatment, indicating that the vaccine merits additional study
as a possible modulator of the immune response associated with allergic
rhinitis.
ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND
MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND
COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH
YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"