Summary
Diphtheria is a bacterial infection caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, which attacks the respiratory system. Although the earliest accounts of diphtheria date back at least 2,000 years, this disease was first associated with major epidemics in Europe during the 16th century. By the 18th century, diphtheria became a major cause of childhood illness and death in the New World. With the advent of widespread vaccination in the 1920s, the number of cases and deaths dropped dramatically. However, in areas where vaccination rates drop, diphtheria can rapidly become reestablished, as seen in the late 1990s in several former Soviet republics. Diphtheria, Second Edition describes the disease, the bacteria that causes it, and the development of effective treatments.
Chapters include:
- History of Diphtheria
- How Does Corynebacterium Diphtheriae Cause Disease?
- How Is Diphtheria Treated?
- How Is Diphtheria Prevented?
- Resurgence of Diphtheria in the Former Soviet Union, Yemen, Venezuela, and Bangladesh
- Uses of Diphtheria Toxin.
About the Author(s)
Patrick Guilfoile earned his Ph.D. in bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying antibiotic resistance, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT, where he studied infectious disease. He then spent 21 years at Bemidji State University as a faculty member teaching microbiology, genetics, engaging in research, and serving as an administrator. This was followed by five years at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, serving as provost and interim chancellor. He has written extensively, authoring numerous papers and articles in science and science education journals, a laboratory manual, and seven books in the Deadly Diseases and Epidemics series, along with several revisions of additional titles.