Lancet Infectious Diseases: Card seedlings may protect newborns from other infection risks

BCG is a vaccine originally used to prevent tuberculosis and is the most used vaccine in human history.
, as recommended by the World Health Organization, newborns should be vaccinated as early as possible in high-prevalence areas of TB (22 high-burden TB countries).
study showed that card-based seedlings may provide a beneficial non-specific effect on the health of the population in poor areas, slightly reducing mortality and the incidence of sepsis and respiratory diseases, with the earlier the effect.
growing evidence that carcass has nonse specific beneficial effects, especially in neonatal periods, and is important for global public health policy.
recently, a study published in the lancet Infectious Diseases journal showed that BCG protects newborns from common infections such as upper respiratory tract infections, chest infections and diarrhea.
study is the first to investigate the effects of BCG on all-cause infectious disease mortality in healthy infants in different TB high-mortality homes/regions.
in the study, researchers screened 1,148 Ugandan newborns between September 25, 2014 and July 31, 2015, of whom 560 were selected and randomly assigned to receive card seedling at birth (n s 280) or at 6 weeks of age (n s 280).
results showed a 25 per cent reduction in the incidence of non-tuberculosis infections compared to post-birth infants, especially for low birth weight infants and boys, who appeared to receive the most protection.
this means that the card appears to prevent mild, moderate and severe infections.
researchers further found that the BCG vaccine was associated with an increase or decrease in hismoglobin triple methylation in the PBMC inflammatory cytokine promoter region for the first six weeks, suggesting that the nonsexual effects of BCG in newborns may be mediated in part by the supergenetic reprogramming of bone marrow cells, albeit in a different way than in adults.
suggest that BCG vaccinations for babies born on the same day could reduce the risk of infection in newborns in areas with high rates of infectious diseases, potentially saving thousands of lives each year.
, the findings also increase the likelihood that the BCG vaccine could be used to protect children and adults from COVID-19 and other new infectious diseases.
, BCG vaccination can help protect newborns from other infections in addition to preventing tuberculosis.
many countries recommend BCG vaccinations at birth, they are often delayed due to post-implementation difficulties.
, ensuring BCG vaccination on the first day can have a significant impact on neonatal infections and deaths in places with high rates of infectious diseases.