The case of a student from Berlin-Spandau suffering from diphtheria has made headlines in recent days. The boy, who comes from the Havelland district of Brandenburg and went to a Waldorf school in Spandau, is not vaccinated.
He is currently being treated in a Berlin clinic and is receiving invasive ventilation. The head of pediatric emergency medicine at the West Brandenburg Clinic, Bernhard Kosak, pointed out the consequences of a lack of vaccination in view of a severe case of diphtheria. “Many people think that doctors can already treat these diseases today.”
Diphtheria case: Other diseases are also difficult to treat
However, this is not true in many cases, Kosak told the Märkische Allgemeine. “That is not true for meningococci, not for pneumococci, not for measles, mumps, rubella, not for diphtheria and tetanus. I can’t treat them or can only treat them to a limited extent – there remains a high risk of consequential damage.”
Diphtheria was once known as the “strangling angel of children.” According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), there has been a single or double-digit number of infected people in recent years; only in 2022 and 2023 did the number reach three digits, which was also due to an international outbreak among refugees. According to the RKI, there have been 37 confirmed cases in Germany so far this year, including 2 in Berlin. The last time there was a suspected case of diphtheria in Havelland was in 2012, but it was not confirmed.
A vaccination against diphtheria is one of the standard vaccinations for infants and children recommended by the Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko) and is also recommended as a booster vaccination for adults every ten years.
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