Does Vaccination with Bacille Calmette-Guerin Protect Against AIDS?

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Abstract
In the United States a majority of patients with AIDS are infected with bacteria of the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), while in Sweden only ∼10% of AIDS patients are so infected. It is proposed that general vaccination with bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) in Sweden may have induced protection not only against tuberculosis but also against infections with MAC, accounting for the lower incidence of MAC infection in Swedish patients with AIDS. The current AIDS pandemic may indicate a need for reevaluation of national BCG vaccination policies.