Diphtheria

A bacterial infection that causes a sore throat, fever, and sometimes serious or fatal complications. It is caused by. During infection, the bacterium may multiply in the throat or skin. In the throat, bacterial multiplication gives rise to a membrane that may cover the tonsils and spread up over the palate or down to the larynx and trachea, causing breathing difficulties. Other symptoms are enlarged lymph nodes in the neck, increased heart rate, and fever. Sometimes, infection is confined to the skin. Life-threatening symptoms develop only in nonimmune people and are caused by a toxin released by the bacterium. A victim may collapse and die within a day of developing throat symptoms. More often the person is recovering from diphtheria when heart failure or paralysis of the throat or limbs develops. Diphtheria is treated with antibiotics. An antitoxin is also given if diphtheria affects the throat. If severe breathing difficulties develop, a tracheostomy may be needed. Mass immunization has made diphtheria rare in developed countries.