<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/may/19/diphtheria-outbreak-australia-spread-vaccine-northern-territory>
"The health minister, Mark Butler, has expressed concern about “the biggest
diphtheria outbreak we’ve seen, certainly for decades” as the serious bacterial
infection spreads through the Northern Territory and into bordering states.
Diphtheria, which can cause either skin (cutaneous) or respiratory disease, is
considered rare in Australia following a vaccination rollout that began in the
1930s.
Before the Covid pandemic, most Australian cases came from overseas. According
to the Australian Centre for Disease Control, a high proportion of these cases
were cutaneous diphtheria.
But since 2020 there have been a few small diphtheria clusters in different
areas of northern Australia, involving both cutaneous and respiratory cases.
The most recent outbreak began in late 2025 and the Northern Territory Centre
for Disease Control declared an outbreak in March. It has affected Indigenous
people almost exclusively.
The latest data from the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System shows
there are now 133 cases in the Northern Territory linked to the outbreak. There
are 79 cases in Western Australia, six in South Australia and up to five in
Queensland. There is a mix of cutaneous and respiratory cases.
It’s the first large outbreak to be seen in Australia in more than 20 years."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
