[Contacts of children with tuberculous patients]. / Contactos infantiles de enfermos tuberculosos.

One hundred and nine adults recently diagnosed of active pulmonary tuberculosis (all of them with smear positive sputum) were selected. Their household contacts under fifteen years of age were studied. 73.1 por 100 of the children were tuberculin-positive, and 33.1 por 100 of these "reactors" had developed a pulmonary tuberculosis themselves. The bacillary density in the sputum of the source case was correlated to percentage of infected and ill children among his contacts. Neonatal vaccination with BCG showed a protective effect against the illness in children under eight years of age.

[Short term treatment of infantile pulmonary tuberculosis]. / Tratamiento de corta duración de la tuberculosis pulmonar infantil.

Due to the scarcity of published articles on short-course chemotherapeutic regimens for pediatric pulmonary tuberculosis, the following study has been carried out: Twenty-five children diagnosed of pulmonary tuberculosis were administered a short course therapeutic regimen consisting of three tuberculostatics for the first two month (isoniazid, rifampicin and pyrazinamide) and only two (isoniazid and rifampicin) for the following four months. The results were compared with those obtained from a control group of twenty-five children receiving the "classical" therapy: two drugs (isoniazid and rifampicin) for a nine month period. The statistical analysis did not demonstrate any significant difference related to evolution, duration and complications of the disease, between both groups. Therefore, this short course therapeutic regimen could be accepted for pediatric pulmonary tuberculosis.