[Streptomycin was born fifty years ago].

The discovery of streptomycin by Waksman in 1943 marked the beginning of true chemotherapy in all forms of tuberculosis. The possibility to reverse the lethal course of tuberculous meningitis in children constituted a hope verged on enthusiasm. But after encouraged results, skepticism arose: cases of resistance of BK to streptomycin were reported and other observations noted severe sequelae when administration had begun too late. Successes due to drug were often weakened by side effects like cochlear and vestibular deficiencies. All those reservations came in addition to the great price of streptomycin, difficulties of its supply and doubts upon long term prognosis for cared patients. Finally streptomycin won. In the following years, new drugs more and more efficient against tuberculosis were used, instead of streptomycin which some enthusiastic people had nevertheless thought only able to eradicate the "white plague". Today, morbidity and mortality from tuberculosis remain dramatic, partly accelerated by the AIDS epidemic and increased by high frequency of cases with BK resistance to all drugs ... except streptomycin. What a long story, full of hopes, for this antibiotic which, during the first clinical trials, saved from certain death ... a child became the author of the present paper!