Current national policies for infant universal bacille CalmetteGuérin vaccination were associated with lower mortality from coronavirus disease 2019
10.7774/cevr.2020.9.2.179
- Author:
Risa EBINA-SHIBUYA
1
;
Nobuyuki HORITA
;
Ho NAMKOONG
;
Takeshi KANEKO
Author Information
1. Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, Immunology Center, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
- Publication Type:Brief communication
- From:Clinical and Experimental Vaccine Research
2020;9(2):179-182
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
An exciting debate has emerged whether bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination is effective for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Some advocated that BCGvaccinated people are less suffered from the virus because BCG vaccination is recommendedin COVID-19 high burden countries. However, the others objected because this seemingly attractive relationship is explainable with confounding factors. In a multiple regression with 171 countries adjusting socioeconomical and climatic covariates, countries with current universal pediatric BCG policy were associated with 30-fold (95% confidence interval, 17–52) decrease of COVID-19 mortality per population compared to countries without the policy.
