The Briefing Room
General Category => Science, Technology and Knowledge => Topic started by: ABX on June 08, 2015, 10:06:34 pm
-
A six-year-old boy who had not been vaccinated is Spain’s first case of diphtheria in 28 years. The young boy, from the Catalan city of Olot, is reportedly very ill and is being treated with antitoxin. The parents, who had chosen not to vaccinate their child, are “devastated” and have now had their younger daughter immunized as a result.
Diphtheria is a bacterial infection that spreads through coughing or sneezing, according to the World Health Organization. Once infected, sufferers can experience a sore throat, fever and swollen glands in the neck. Diphtheria can lead to serious complications even with treatment, with 10% of cases resulting in death. Spain’s Health Ministry had to scramble to find the drug to treat the child as there had not been a case of diphtheria in Spain for almost 28 years due to the country’s high vaccination coverage (over 95%). The antitoxin was eventually delivered from Moscow to Barcelona by the Russian ambassador....
http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/spain-s-first-case-diphtheria-28-years-due-lack-vaccination
-
During the 1880s and 1890s my grandfather's family lost 3 children, all to diphtheria. Two died during one week, it is said. Treatment was said to be gargling with kerosene.
These people lived near Vermillion, then Dakota Territory, along the Missouri River. The parents were both immigrants from Sweden.
So anyway back then, in order to have four survive until adulthood, seven were born.
"Anti" people are downright dangerous, as this family in Spain proves.
-
Treatment was said to be gargling with kerosene.
Yum.