This bacteria produces a poison that can spread around the body
Name
Diphtheria
Transmission
- An infection caused by the Corynebacterium diphtheriae bacteria
- People become infected through direct physical contact with an infected person:
- Inhaling respiratory droplets from the infected person coughing or sneezing
- Touching open sores/skin lesions of an infected person (rare)
Geography
Worldwide but more common in tropical climates
Incubation Period
1– 10 days after infection
Signs and Symptoms
- Fever
- Chills
- Headache
- Thick covering on back of throat
- Sore throat
- Nasal discharge
- Cough
- Difficulty swallowing
- Difficulty breathing
- Swollen glands in neck
- Pain, redness, swelling and ulcers on the skin (cutaneous diptheria)
- Paralysis
- Heart failure
- Sepsis
Diagnosis
- Laboratory testing of tissue samples and throat cultures
Treatment
- An antitoxin can stop the poison produced by the bacteria from damaging the body
- Antibiotics can kill the bacteria
- Patients are usually kept in isolation until 48 hours after starting antibiotics so they are no longer contagious
Prognosis
- Fatal in 5 – 10% of cases, with a higher mortality rate in young children
- Was once a major cause of illness and death among children worldwide
Prevention: What Can You Do?
- Ensure you get the vaccine to protect yourself
- The vaccine is usually combined with vaccines for tetanus and whooping cough (pertussis)
Diphtheria In the News
- Fatality reported in unvaccinated Antwerp, Belgium child
- Health scare in Denmark as refugees bring back diphtheria after 20yr absence
Sources:
http://www.cdc.gov/diphtheria/
http://www.who.int/immunization/diseases/diphtheria/en/
