The tuberculosis (TB) vaccine is rarely used in the United States. It is only recommended for children living with someone who is actively infected with TB who either (1) cannot take antibiotics to treat the infection or (2) is infected with a strain of TB that is highly resistant to all antibiotics. Decisions regarding this vaccine are typically made in consultation with a local TB control program. The TB vaccine is given as a single shot.
In most other countries, the vaccine for tuberculosis, known as the BCG vaccine, is used more commonly because of the frequency of tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis kills more people in the world than any other infection. Each year about 10 million people are infected with TB and about 1.8 million die. Cases of TB occur in the United States each year, but most are diagnosed in people not born in the U.S. In 2018, less than 10,000 cases of TB and fewer than 500 deaths were caused by TB.
Tuberculosis (TB) is caused by a bacterium, Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The infection primarily attacks the lungs. The bacterium is so destructive that it is common to cough up both mucus and blood. Those less than 5 years old are susceptible to a severe, often fatal, form of TB (called "miliary" TB) that spreads to many parts of the body, including the lining of the brain (meninges).
Extremely contagious, TB is spread through the simple act of sneezing, talking and coughing. Many people who are infected don't get sick right away; rather, the bacteria remain dormant, reactivating years, even decades, later. That's when lung disease and the characteristic cough begin.
A tuberculin skin test (TST; also sometimes called a PPD test, which stands for “purified protein derivative”) and chest X-ray are the best ways to tell if someone is infected with TB. A blood test can be used in older children and adults.
The incidence of tuberculosis had been steadily increasing in the United States since the 1980s coincident with the HIV epidemic. However since 1993, a slow decline in the number of cases has occurred likely due to better control of HIV with the use of anti-retroviral drugs. Unfortunately, the rate of decline is so slow that predictions suggest tuberculosis will not be eliminated from the United States during this century.