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West Java regency declares diphtheria outbreak after 7 deaths
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A student reacts while receiving the diphtheria vaccine at a Christian elementary school in Banda Aceh on Nov. 15, 2022. (AFP/Chaideer Mahyuddin)
T
he Garut regency administration in West Java has declared an “extraordinary occurrence [KLB]” of diphtheria in its jurisdiction after seven residents are suspected to have died from the infectious disease.
Diphtheria is a serious infection caused by strains of bacteria called Corynebacterium Diphtheriae that usually affects the mucous membranes of the nose and throat. It can lead to difficulty breathing, heart rhythm problems and even death.
Leli Yuliani, secretary of the Garut Health Agency, said that the first case of diphtheria in the regency was found about four weeks ago.
"So far we have found five positive cases of diphtheria, most of them are children. However, we have not yet been able to confirm whether the seven people died due to the disease," Leli said on Wednesday as reported by Antara.
Leli added that the agency was currently investigating 55 close contacts of the patients and waiting for diphtheria test results of 72 residents.
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said that the outbreak was triggered by low diphtheria vaccination rate in the regency due to COVID-19 pandemic.
"We have sent ministry officials to the regency to help local authorities deal with the outbreak, we'll also try to increase vaccination coverage in regions with low children immunization rate," he said on Wednesday as quoted by Kompas.
