[BCG: an almost 100-year-old vaccine].

There has been a vaccine against tuberculosis (TB) since 1921. This vaccine contains Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), a live attenuated strain of the tubercle bacterium Mycobacterium bovis. The vaccine is fairly effective in children, but protection is poor in adults. Protection lasts about 15 years. The vaccine is safe for immunocompetent people, provided it is administered intracutaneously and at the correct dose. This article looks back at the development of the tuberculin skin test and BCG vaccine, and their use in the Netherlands.