01767nas a2200313   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001500055653001600070653001100086653002500097653001000122653002000132653001100152653001100163653001200174653000900186653002400195100001500219700001900234700001900253700002100272700001300293245007600306300001100382490000800393520103800401022001401439       1995                            d  c1995 Nov10aAdolescent10aBCG Vaccine10aBrazil10aCase-Control Studies10aChild10aDrug Evaluation10aFemale10aHumans10aleprosy10aMale10aStatistics as Topic1 aLombardi C1 aPedrazzani E S1 aPedrazzani J C1 aFerreira Filho P1 aZicker F00a[The protective efficacy of BCG against leprosy in São Paulo, Brazil].  a415-210 v1193 a<p>The protection against leprosy conferred by BCG vaccination was evaluated in a case-control study. Selected for the study were 97 patients under 16 years of age who had been diagnosed with leprosy (cases) and 385 healthy persons (controls), who were matched according to sex, age, place of residence, and type of contact (intra- or extradomicilliary). The cases were selected from a register of active cases as well as a series of new leprosy patients treated in 50 centers in the city of São Paulo, Brasil. To estimate the protective effect of BCG, the prevalences of BCG scars among cases and controls were compared. The presence of one or more scars was associated with a protective efficacy of 90% (95% confidence interval: 78%-96%). Stratified analysis by age group, sex, socioeconomic level, and clinical form of leprosy did not reveal any important differences in the protection conferred by the vaccine. The significance of these findings and the appropriateness of using BCG in leprosy control programs is discussed.</p>  a0030-0632