Every year, 1.7 million people die from tuberculosis; however, a new vaccine could improve upon this number. A new tuberculosis was recently tested in South Africa and has shown promising results in people.
The vaccine was developed by ‘Statens Serum Institut’ – One of Denmark’s largest research institutions in the health sector – and has been tested on 990 youths between the age of 12 and 17 in South Africa, during the last two years. The trial was conducted by giving a third of the participants a placebo-vaccine, a third received the new vaccine, and the last third were given the current tuberculosis vaccine – the so called Calmette vaccine, which is almost a hundred years old.
Less protection – but still a breakthrough
The participants who were given the old vaccine were 45,4 % less likely to contract tuberculosis, while those who were given the experimental vaccine were 30,5 % less likely to contract tuberculosis. However, even though the old vaccine offers greater protection, it does not necessarily mean that it is better. The problem with the Calmette vaccine is that its effect weakens over time; it is very effective in children, but almost non-functional in adults.
The Calmette vaccine were made available in 1921 and that is the last time a vaccine was shown to protect humans against tuberculosis. Therefore, is it not insignificant that scientists were successful in developing a new vaccine – after 97 years.
“These results are a breakthrough in this field. It is the culmination of 25 years of research in new vaccines for tuberculosis, here at the SSI (Statens Serum Institut),” says Peter Lawætz Andersen in a press releases from the SSI.
The results are not quite strong enough
In time, the scientists hope that the new vaccine can protect those on whom the old vaccine was ineffectual. However, the results in people are not quite good enough for the new vaccine to be implemented yet.
“However, they support my expectations that a new generation of new and improved tuberculosis vaccines can be implemented, and that these will be especially valuable to those, on whom the Calmette vaccine is ineffectual,” says Peter Lawætz Andersen in the press release.
What are the symptoms of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is an infectious disease, normally situated in the lungs, but which can be located in any organ. Tuberculosis is not especially infectious – and transmission normally requires prolonged close contact with an infected individual.
If tuberculosis is situated in the lungs, the most common symptoms are:
- Coughing, with sometime bloody phlegm
- Tiredness
- Lack of appetite
- Weight loss
- Possibly fever and night sweats
Tuberculosis can also develop in other organs, in which case the symptoms can be swollen lymph nodes in the neck, painful joints and/or bones, blood in the urine or stomach aches – depending on where the disease is situated.
