Diphtheria: Symptoms,Treatment and Prevention

Introduction

Diphtheria, a bacterial infection affects nose and throat to children living in rural areas, crowded and unclean conditions. Children have not taken up to up to date immunizations are at higher risk. This disease is most common in developing countries.

Symptoms

• The early symptoms include sore throat, low-grade fever and swollen neck glands.
• The toxin produced by the bacteria may also cause thick gray coating in nose and throat resulting in difficulty in breathing and swallowing.
• In the later stage difficulty in breathing and swallowing increases.
• The breathing problem may also cause blurred vision or double vision.
• Sometimes the color of skin fades and other symptoms such as palpitations and anxiety may also be observed.
• If not treated during early stage, the toxin may enter into blood stream and affects vital organs including heart, lung, central nervous system and kidney causing irregular heart beat, abnormal lung and kidney functions. These symptoms can sometimes be fatal.

Contagious Disease

• Diphtheria being highly contagious can easily passed from infected persons to others. The bacteria can easily infect others through coughing or sneezing. Sharing coomon home items used by infected persons can also spread it.
• The person infected with diphtheria should be isolated from people and family members. All family members and people came in contact with the patient should be diagnosed for their immune status and throat cultures should be examined for the presence of bacteria. Booster doses and antibiotics for diphtheria should be provided to all members.
• People infected by bacteria may also pose a risk to spread the disease, although they may not show any sigh and symptoms of diphtheria. The time taken by a person between exposed to bacteria and to infection stage may take 2 to 4 days.

Test to diagnose diphtheria

• Throat culture is the main test carried out by a pathologist to confirm the presence of bacteria responsible for causing diphtheria.
• The clinical diagnosis and physical symptoms should support each other.

Treatment

• This is a highly contagious disease and treatment of children or adults should be carried out in special contagious wards in Hospital.
• Once the doctor confirms the disease, the information is given to the concerned government department and all precautions are taken to prevent the spread of the disease.
• The infected person is given anti toxin, to counter the diphtheria toxin produced by the bacteria, entered into the blood stream.
• The infected person is also given a suitable dose of antibiotics to kill the remaining bacteria in the body.
• In advance case of affect of toxin on human organs such as heart, lung, central nervous system or kidney, ventilator with intravenous fluid and heart medicines can be recommended for achieving the normal functioning of all these organs.
• With these medicines the patients are allowed to stay in contagious wards for one month to one and half month under the supervision of a doctor.

Prevention

Immunization of children with DTP or DTaP (Diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis) vaccine should be carried out as mentioned below. DTaP vaccines should be given to children at 2, 4 and six month of age.

• Booster dose should be given to children between 12 to 18 months.
• Booster dose should be given to children between 4 to 6 years again.
• Booster dose given thereafter at the interval of every 10 years.

Non-immunized adults should be vaccinated with DT (diphtheria tetanus) vaccine.

Summary: Diphtheria is a contagious disease, and can be fatal if proper treatment at initial stage is not given. Vaccinations in children should be carried out as per the plan and should not be dropped in middle