Leaders: Should TB jab return?

TUBERCULOSIS infection rates in Kirklees have shot up by 17% in the last year.

This increase has prompted calls for the TB jab to return to secondary schools.

It was given routinely to youngsters until 2005. But since then, vaccinations have only been given to those at risk from TB exposure, because figures outside those groups were so low.

Perhaps they were low because the vaccination programme had protected the population well in the first place?

Is the end of mass vaccination one reason why more people have contracted the disease in recent years?

With TB still prevalent in some countries – including Africa and Pakistan – and more people travelling, it could be that some are bringing the disease home with them, posing a risk to an increasingly un-vaccinated population.

We treat TB with antibiotics today but it’s still a killer in some countries.

With a vaccine at our disposal, perhaps everyone should once again have the option to receive it, rather than risk TB in future?