- A 27-year-old man died in a Brisbane hospital from preventable illness diphtheria
- The Cairns man was flown to hospital with the rare illness where he later died
- The illness is highly prevented with vaccinations, with few reported cases
A non-immunised man died in hospital from an illness that could have been avoided with a vaccination.
The 27-year-old Cairns man died after spending weeks in hospital with the rare illness, diphtheria.
Medical experts were unsure how the man contracted the contagious illness because he had not been overseas recently, according to The Courier Mail.
The 27-year-old Cairns man died after spending weeks in a Brisbane hospital with rare illness, diphtheria, which could have been prevented with a vaccination
Dr Richard Kidd from AMA Queensland said the illness, which affects the throat, caused more deaths in Australia than other infectious diseases before vaccines were introduced
‘It’s a very powerful story about the value of the vaccine because it’s virtually disappeared and no vaccinated person has died from diphtheria in Australia in the past 20 years,’ he said
Diphtheria is an infection caused by a poison made of bacteria in the throat, nose or wind pipes which can lead to paralysis or heart failure.
Dr Richard Kidd from AMA Queensland said before the vaccination for diphtheria was introduced, the illness caused more deaths in Australia than other infectious diseases, according to ABC News.
‘It’s a very powerful story about the value of the vaccine because it’s virtually disappeared and no vaccinated person has died from diphtheria in Australia in the past 20 years,’ he said.
‘Immunity is pretty good, but it should be better.’
The man was flown from Cairns Hospital to Prince Charles Hospital on January 24 in a critical condition.
The 27-year-old’s death is Queensland’s first recorded death from the disease in seven years.
The illness, which is extremely rare in developed countries, is given in combination with tetanus vaccinations (stock image)
There have been 13 reported cases of diphtheria in 23 years before 2014, however there have been 20 cases in Australia in the last four years, according to Brisbane Times.
The illness, which is extremely rare in developed countries, is given in combination with tetanus vaccinations.