Diphtheria

Diphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness characterized by sore throat, low-grade fever, and an adherent membrane of the tonsil(s), pharynx, and/or nose. A milder form of diphtheria can be limited to the skin. It is caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, an aerobic Gram-positive bacterium.

Epidemiology

Diphtheria remains a serious disease, with 5-10% percent fatality and up to 20% in children younger than 5 or adults older than 40. Outbreaks, though very rare, still can occur worldwide, even in developed nations. After the breakup of the old Soviet Union in the late 1980s, vaccination rates fell so low that there was an explosion of diphtheria cases. In 1991 there were 2,000 cases of diphtheria in Russia and its newer independent states. By 1998 there were as many as 200,000 cases, with 5,000 deaths, according to Red Cross estimates. This was so great an increase that it was cited in the Guinness Book of World Records as "most resurgent disease".

Related Topics:
Soviet Union - Red Cross - Guinness Book of World Records

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Such statistics show that constant vigilance must be maintained even on largely eradicated diseases, especially since many of these diseases show growing resistance to drugs that have been used to fight them for decades.

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From the CDC guidelines:

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:Cutaneous diphtheria should not be reported. Respiratory disease caused by nontoxigenic C. diphtheriae should be reported as diphtheria. All diphtheria isolates, regardless of association with disease, should be sent to the Diphtheria Laboratory, National Center for Infectious Diseases, CDC.

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