Environmental versus Constitutional Factors in the Development of Tuberculosis among Negroes1,2

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Abstract
A group of white and Negro patients, living in identical environments (mental hospitals of New York State) were studied to determine the effect of environment upon the morbidity and mortality from tuberculosis. In factors of importance in the reaction of tuberculosis, the races showed no significant differences. Within a similar environment both races developed the disease at the same rate. Among those who developed tuberculosis, the proportion who died of the disease was similar for both races. Antimicrobial drugs benefited both races equally. Because of these findings, it is concluded that, under similar conditions of environment, the response of the Negro to tuberculosis is similar to that of the white, and that racial factors probably play a minor role in producing differences in tuberculosis morbidity and mortality.

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