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Beginning in 19 50, three special Medical Research Council teams, each
equipped with a mass X-ray unit, visited 22 North London boroughs, including
Brentford and Chiswick, and towns in the Midlands and North of England. With
the consent of the parents school children in their 15th year were asked to
volunteer and a proportion were given tuberculosis vaccines. By December 1952,
56,700 children, of whom 100 came from Brentford and Chiswick, had joined the
scheme. Since then the participants had been followed by regular X-ray examinations,
postal enquiries and annual home visits. The vast amount of home
visiting involved has been carried out by the health visitors and school nurses
of the local health authorities,, who have undertaken the work in addition to
their normal duties. The follow-up has been very successful and over two-thirds
of the participants continue to return for the X- ray examinations, approximately
75% return postal forms and over 90% have a home visit The present addresses
of over 99% are known.
Continuation of the Investigation
The first report included results up to four years, Until the scheme has
continued for a further period it will not be possible to say for how long the
protection given by each vaccine will last, and whether those protected from
tuberculosis in the first few years after vaccination will remain protected in
later life. Until more is known of the duration of protection given by the
vaccine it is also not possible to decide definitely the most suitable age at
which it should be given
Provided the scheme can be successfully continued it is probable that information
of great value to the future control of tuberculosis, both as regards
vaccination and also many other aspects of tuberculosis as a public health problem,
will be obtained. This dependson the continuation of support by the many
local authorities concerned
Investigation of New Tuberculosis in the Adolescent
In the Annual Report for 1953 it was reported that a scheme for the investigation
of the high incidence of tuberculosis among young adults was begun.
The plan was to invite children leaving school to take part in a scheme when
they would be X-rayed at once and each year sent for and another X-ray carried
out.
These annual reviews are to be continued for 10 years from the time of the
beginning of the experiment and during 1956, 366 altogether, 146 boys and 220
girls, attended for an X«ray under this scheme,, a percentage of 44 out of a
possible attendance i„ e the number invited to take part in the scheme.
No positive cases have as yet been found amongst these adolescents.
HOUSING CONDITIONS OF CASES OF TUBERCULOSIS
NOTIFIED DURING 1956
The housing conditions of 78 of the 95 new cases of tuberculosis were found
to be as follows: -
77 patients lived in sufficiently satisfactory housing accommodation, 30
in flats, 27 in houses, 19 in lodgings or furnished rooms, and 1 in a caravan.
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