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Exudative pharyngitis possibly due to Corynebacterium pseudodiphtheriticum, a new challenge in the differential diagnosis of diphtheria.

Emerging infectious diseases ·Vol. 3 ·No. 1 ·1997-00-00 ·Pages 65-8

Izurieta HS, Strebel PM, Youngblood T, Hollis DG, Popovic T

Abstract

Corynebacterium pseudodiphtheriticum has rarely been reported to cause disease in humans, despite its common presence in the flora of the upper respiratory tract. We report here a case of exudative pharyngitis with pseudomembrane possibly caused by C. pseudodiphtheriticum in a 4-year-old girl. The case initially triggered clinical and laboratory suspicion of diphtheria. Because C. pseudodiphtheriticum can be easily confused with Corynebacterium diphtheriae in Gram stain, clarification of its role in the pathogenesis of exudative pharyngitis in otherwise healthy persons is of public health importance. Simple and rapid screening tests to differentiate C. pseudodiphtheriticum from C. diphtheriae should be performed to prevent unnecessary concern in the community and unnecessary outbreak control measures.

MeSH Terms
Child, Preschool Corynebacterium/genetics,isolation & purification,pathogenicity Corynebacterium Infections/diagnosis,etiology,microbiology Corynebacterium diphtheriae/genetics,isolation & purification Diagnosis, Differential Diphtheria/diagnosis Female Humans Pharyngitis/etiology,microbiology Polymerase Chain Reaction Species Specificity
Authors & Affiliations
5 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Izurieta H S
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Strebel P M
Youngblood T
Hollis D G
Popovic T
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Article Info
Journal
Emerging infectious diseases
Abbr.
Emerg Infect Dis
ISSN
1080-6040
DOI
10.3201/eid0301.970109
Published
1997-00-00
Pages
65-8
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
9508155
PMCID
PMC2627595
Subset
IM
Corrections
CommentIn
PMID: 9204312
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.3201/eid0301.970109 PMC Full Text View journal details
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