Relationship between BCG scar size and asthma in children?

OBJECTIVE This case control study was conducted to evaluate any association between the BCG scar size and occurrence of asthma among children between 6-14 years of age. METHODS Cases consisted of 90 asthmatic children. Control group included 90 non-asthmatic children from the emergency room service of the same hospital. The BCG scar was measured as the average of the transverse and longitudinal diameters. RESULTS The results showed that asthmatic subjects have a 3.2 times greater risk exhibiting a scar diameter of less than 5mm than non- asthmatic subjects (CI 95 percent = 1.40 - 7.63 P < 0.01). CONCLUSION It was concluded that asthmatic children and adolescents exhibited a greater frequency of an BCG scar diameter of less than 5mm than non-asthmatics. Clinical significance of this observation is uncertain.