Schick, Bela (1877–1967)

Hungarian-born US paediatrician who developed a test for diphtheria in infants. His work to diagnose and effectively treat diphtheria saved many children in Europe in the first part of the 20th century from this major killer of newborn infants.

The Schick test was developed by Schick when he was professor of paediatrics in Vienna 1913. He showed that susceptibility to diphtheria could be detected by the skin reaction after injection into the skin of minute doses of diphtheria toxin. He found that newborn infants are seldom susceptible to the toxin and that their susceptibility increases up to one year of age then gradually decreases.

In 1923 Schick emigrated to New York. He held the position of professor of diseases of children at Columbia University 1936–42.