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New Diphtheria-Like Illness Jumps from Pets to Humans – Are You Safe?

By sara_lee | Last Updated: September 15, 2024

New Diptheria: In a first for the United States, two cases of a diphtheria-like illness transmitted between people and their pets have been identified in Utah and Colorado.

The respiratory infections, occurring in 2022 and 2023, were caused by the Corynebacterium ulceran bacterium. This bacterium is closely related to the pathogen responsible for diphtheria.

New Diphtheria

A recent study from Japan highlighted that C. ulceran is prevalent in the environment and poses significant risks to livestock and wildlife. However, transmission between pets and humans remains rare.

First Documented Case in Utah

The inaugural case in the U.S. was recorded in 2022. A Utah resident, living with a spouse, another housemate, three cats, and a dog, developed a persistent leg wound.

Laboratory tests identified C. ulceran in the wound. Further screening showed that the patient’s spouse and two of the three cats also harbored the bacterium.

Antibiotic treatment was administered to all household members, including the pets, resulting in the resolution of the infections.

Second Case in Colorado

The following year, a Colorado resident experienced ongoing upper respiratory symptoms. The individual shared a home with a spouse and two dogs and had a visitor with a dog who stayed for two nights. While only the patient showed symptoms, testing confirmed C. ulceran in both the patient and the visitor’s dog. Treatment with erythromycin successfully cured the patient.

Implications and Recommendations

Amanda Metz from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, who led the research team, emphasized the need for increased awareness among physicians regarding C. ulceran.

The bacterium exhibits symptoms similar to diphtheria, and it is hypothesized that the diphtheria vaccine might offer some protection against C. ulceran. Therefore, routine vaccination with diphtheria toxoid-containing vaccines is essential.

Metz and her colleagues noted that it remains unclear whether the humans in these cases contracted C. ulceran from their pets or vice versa. Notably, C. ulceran does not spread between humans directly; human-to-human transmission has not been observed.

“Evidence from this investigation suggests that transmission of toxigenic C. ulcerans between humans and household pets occurred, although the direction of transmission could not be determined,” concluded Metz’s team.

These findings were published on June 13 in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, a journal of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

More information

Find out more about diphtheria at the Oregon Health Authority.

SOURCE: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, June 13, 2024

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