Bacterial culture for the isolation and identification of Corynebacterium diphtheriae & Corynebacterium ulcerans.
Diagnosis of / investigation for Diptheria / Cutaneous Diptheria
Throat & Wound Swab
Charcoal transwab
For electronic requesting using EPIC (RDUH ONLY):
Please see instructions for Throat Swab Culture & Wound Swab Culture
Consult Microbiologist immediately if suspected clinically. Do not remove membrane if present – there is a danger of asphyxiation. Diphtheria is a vaccine preventable disease and is now exceedingly rare in England & Wales (<10 cases per year). All recent cases have been associated with foreign travel, or contact with an overseas person, or laboratory-acquired.
Send wound swab if “tropical” travel associated skin ulceration, and write travel details on request.
Processed locally in Microbiology at RDUH
Any isolates will be sent the Respiratory and Vaccine Preventable Bacteria Reference Unit (RVPBRU), UKHSA Colindale, London for confirmation and toxigenicity testing.
24-72 Hours (for initial culture)
Contact Microbiology if this is suspected
Diphtheria – Symptoms, diagnosis and treatment | BMJ Best Practice
Diphtheria vaccine | Treatment summaries | BNF | NICE
Diphtheria: the green book, chapter 15 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Diphtheria: guidance, data and analysis – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
SMI – ID 2 – Identification of Corynebacterium species (rcpath.org)
Specimen Labelling Procedure
9018
