The Northern Territory has recorded the country’s first reported death from diphtheria in almost a decade, according to the public health medical officer at the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress, John Boffa.
Diphtheria is a vaccine-preventable disease, and the strain of respiratory diphtheria can be deadly if left untreated.
Dr John Boffa has called for assistance in dealing with the NT’s diphtheria outbreak. (ABC News: Jane Bardon)
Dr Boffa told the ABC the death occurred a number of weeks ago in a remote area.
NT Health have been contacted for comment.
In March, the NT Health Department declared an outbreak of the disease in the Territory for the first time since the 1990s.
According to a report from the Australian Centre for Disease Control, the last time someone in Australia died from diphtheria was in 2018. The report says the person was an unvaccinated adult who had contracted respiratory diphtheria.
Dr Boffa said the disease is spreading across the NT with current case numbers of both respiratory diphtheria and cutaneous diphtheria surpassing 100 and a number of people being admitted to intensive care.
The latest data from the Centre for Disease Control indicates the vast majority of locally acquired cases are residents in ‘outer regional’, remote or very remote areas and more than 98 per cent of cases are Indigenous.
Vaccinations needed to ‘get on top’ of outbreak
Dr Boffa said the majority of the people becoming “seriously sick” after contracting diphtheria are either unvaccinated or have not received a booster in the recommended time frame.
“It’s a tried and proven and effective vaccine — it is the way we will get on top of this outbreak,” he said.
Cases have been recorded in Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia, with a total of 161 testing positive for diphtheria nationwide.
Dr Boffa said the Centre for Disease Control is looking into the reason for the current outbreak.
The vaccine for diphtheria is available in Australia as a combination vaccine, which also includes antigens for pertussis and tetanus. (AP: Frank Augstein/Pool)
He said vaccine hesitancy since COVID-19 could be a contributing factor alongside lagging vaccination rates in remote areas.
While there is a high coverage rate among children, Dr Boffa said teenagers and adults need to receive booster shots.
“Some late adolescents are getting sick because they haven’t had a dose since they were 12 and adults need a booster now if it’s been more than five years.”
Federal funding on the way
Dr Boffa said federal resources are “on the way” to assist with delivering vaccinations and boosters, particularly to vulnerable populations.
“I understand the Commonwealth is going to make a very significant additional contribution to the Territory over six months and that’s what we need,” he said.
He said the outbreak is placing added pressure on already stretched primary healthcare clinics in the NT.
Health professionals are urging people to vaccinate against diphtheria. (iStockPhoto/saritwuttisan)
“We have clinics which are struggling anyway to deliver routine primary healthcare,” he said.
“We don’t want to have to divert essential primary healthcare resources into this, but right now we have to because we don’t have a surge workforce or additional resources.”
Dr Boffa said swift access to federal resources is critical to stem the spread of the disease.
“We don’t want to be taking three or four years to get boosters into people’s arms,” he said.
“We need to get it done quickly and people need to be aware that this is a potentially life-threatening disease and they need to get boosted.”
Diphtheria has been a feared childhood disease throughout history because of devastating outbreaks.
The infection was a common cause of death in children up until the 1940s, when a vaccine was widely rolled out.
Loading
