Pulmonary Tuberculosis in University of Buffalo Medical Students

¹ Assistant in Medicine, University of Buffalo School of Medicine.
² Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Buffalo School of Medicine.

During a four year period 679 medical students were given intracutaneous tuberculin tests once annually and all, regardless of tuberculin reaction, were required to report three times each school year for a chest roentgenogram. There was an over-all incidence of 1.8 per cent significant pulmonary tuberculosis and in this group of 12 students there were two who demonstrated moderately advanced disease, nine in the minimal group and one with tuberculous pleural effusion. Five students developed their disease during the first year, three during the second year, none during the third year and four during the fourth year. One of the students with moderately advanced disease was a Freshman and his disease antedated admission to medical school since it was discovered on the first survey after admission. The percentage of tuberculin reactors in the entering Freshman classes averaged 22.6 per cent. Twenty-seven per cent of the students who entered as negative reactors became positive by the time they graduated. The average increase in percentage of reactors from the Freshman to Sophomore years was 5.9 per cent, from Sophomore to Junior 8.2 per cent, and Junior to Senior 7.2 per cent.