Abstract
Introduction. BCG vaccination is a specific method of tuberculosis prevention in children. This study focuses on analyzing the diagnostic value of the post-vaccination scar in assessing the effectiveness of anti-tuberculosis immunity. The aim of the study is to evaluate the characteristics and significance of the scar formed after BCG/BCG-M vaccination in assessing anti-tuberculosis immunity.
Materials and methods. The outpatient records of 528 children vaccinated at the maternity hospital (2017) were retrospectively analyzed. The first group consisted of 200 children vaccinated with BCG, and the second group consisted of 328 children vaccinated with BCG-M. The results were studied, including the presence of a scar, its characteristics, and size in mm, as well as the results of the Mantoux test (PM 2 TE) at 1 year of age (the size of the papule in mm). There were cases of inconsistencies in the assessment of the effectiveness of vaccination based on the size of the scar and the PM 2 TE. Statistical processing was carried out in the MedCalc Statistical Software program, Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Differences were considered statistically significant at р<0.05.
Conclusion. The scar serves as a visual confirmation of the fact that the vaccination (BCG/BCG-M) was performed. The specific response (delayed-type hypersensitivity) to tuberculin correlated with the size of the scar in the first year of life in cases of effective vaccination. In the practice of a pediatrician, there are problems in assessing the post-vaccination response due to an increase in the frequency of cases of «fuzzy logic».