THE APPLICATION OF TUBERCULIN 



IN THE 



Suppression of Bovine Tnbercnlosis 



BY 



PROF. DR. B. BANG, Copenhagen. 



From the Deiitschen Zeitscbrift fiir Thiorinedicin uml vergleichen<le Pathol- 

 ogic, XXII Bund. 



In a country like Denmark, where for years stockraising and 

 dairying have formed the chief source of national prosperity, the 

 ravages of tuberculosis necessarily claimed the attention of farmers 

 and urged them on to its suppression. Although the old ideas that 

 tuberculosis is a constitutional disease intimately connected with 

 forced milk-production, and that the disease, or a pre-disposition for 

 it, is inherited, are still held, yet there has long been a suspicion of 

 its contagious character. During the last ten years the scientific 

 recognition of this idea has forced itself gradually into the minds of 

 the farmers. Intelligent owners of dairy stock have exerted them- 

 selves for decades to secure protection against the devastation of the 

 disease. To accomplish this they have not allowed sick animals to 

 serve as breeders. These animals have been removed as early as 

 possible from the stable, and their stalls or the entire stable disin- 

 fected. These efforts were certainly not without significance. The 

 condition of health was improved, especially in places where the 

 entire herd was yearly subjected to thorough investigation by a 

 competent veterinarian, and where the owner and veterinarian worked 

 harmoniously together. But even with these conditions it was hardly 

 possible to be freed from the disease. In spite of all progress in 

 clinical diagnosis we were not in condition to discover the majority 

 of the cases in their early stages of development. Here again with 

 tuberculosis the old practice continued as was formerly the case 

 with pleuro-pneumonia. The hidden (latent) cases always remained 

 and were continually coming to the surface. Koch's grand discovery, 

 of tuberculin, alone, placed us in position to discover early even 

 latent tuberculosis. 



As soon as this new material was made accessible for veterinary 

 purposes, I inaugurated very comprehensive experiments with it.^ 



1. Berliner thieraerzth. VVochenschrift. 1891. S. 115; Tidskrift for Veter. 1891 

 p. 35 n. 304; Ugeskrift for Landmand 1892. 



2* 



