Because BCG is a recommended vaccine, a randomised controlled trial of BCG at birth would not be ethically justifiable. However, it is not known whether re-vaccination with BCG in the second year of life might provide some added benefit and a large study to determine this is under way in Guinea Bissau. This study examined the effect of re-vaccination with BCG on the incidence of clinical malaria. If re-vaccination with BCG at 19 months of age is found to protect against malaria this would support the hypothesis that one of the ways that BCG at birth provides protection to young children is through an effect on malaria.