Protection against SARS-CoV-2 by BCG vaccination is not supported by epidemiological analyses.

ABSTRACT: The Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine provides protection against tuberculosis (TB), and is thought to provide protection against non-TB infectious diseases. BCG vaccination has recently been proposed as a strategy to prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2 (CoV-2) to combat the COVID-19 outbreak, supported by its potential to boost innate immunity and initial epidemiological analyses which observed reduced severity of COVID-19 in countries with universal BCG vaccination policies. Seventeen clinical trials are currently registered to inform on the benefits of BCG vaccinations upon exposure to CoV-2. Numerous epidemiological analyses showed a correlation between incidence of COVID-19 and BCG vaccination policies. These studies were not systematically corrected for confounding variables. We o

SUBMITTER: Hensel J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7591473 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature