Puvalluttuq: An Epidemic of Tuberculosis at Eskimo Point, Northwest Territories

An explosive epidemic of tuberculosis in a small isolated settlement is described. This outbreak, in a population of 329 Eskimos and 16 whites, produced 80 cases of active tuberculosis, involving 55% of all the house-holds. Forty-five of these patients were children under 10 years of age and only five were persons over 30. These patients probably were infected by one highly infectious individual.