THE PREVALENCE OF BOVINE TYPE TUBERCULOUS INFECTION IN MAN IN THE ENGLISH RURAL POPULATION

Abstract Data on the past prevalence of tuberculous infection in cattle and the more recent prevalence of tuberculin reactors among school children have been analysed for a number of mural ural districts in England. It was found that the less the exposure to cattle tuberculosis, the lower was the percentage of reactors in school children, indicating that a substantial proportion of the tuberculin reactors among the children was infected from bovine sources. It is concluded that bovine type tuberculous infection of man has been sufficiently prevalent in England in the past to warrant further investigation of its significance in the epidemiology of human tuberculosis today.