Laryngeal diphtheria...a strange virus that worries Egyptians, and the authorities reveal its truth

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News circulated in Egypt about the outbreak of a disease called “laryngeal diphtheria,” which raised concerns among Egyptians for their children.

The Egyptian authorities quickly intervened to confront the matter, as the Ministry of Health confirmed that the disease is a common seasonal respiratory infection that affects young children and does not constitute an epidemic outbreak.

The Ministry explained that infection rates are normal and stable, calling on parents to follow preventive instructions and obtain information from official sources.

The Ministry explained that laryngeal diphtheria is not a new virus or an independent virus in itself, but rather an infection that affects the larynx and trachea and is caused by common and well-known respiratory viruses, most notably the “parainfluenza” virus, noting that it is a seasonal disease that societies have become accustomed to for decades and recurs annually in all countries of the world coinciding with the fall and winter seasons.

The Ministry stressed that there is no link between “laryngeal diphtheria” and diphtheria, explaining that diphtheria is a completely different bacterial disease and the National Vaccination Program provides complete protection against it through compulsory vaccinations for children.

Egyptian Health denied that school students were the group most vulnerable to infection, stressing that the disease mainly targets young children between the ages of 6 months and 3 years, while infection rates decrease significantly after the age of five due to the widening of the respiratory tract with the child’s natural growth.

Regarding the epidemiological situation in the country, the Ministry confirmed that it follows the map of respiratory diseases daily through the epidemiological surveillance system spread in all governorates, confirming that the current rates of respiratory infections in children fall within the normal seasonal rates that are familiar to this time of year.

The Ministry added that no unusual pattern or any epidemic outbreak was observed within nurseries or schools, noting that there is complete coordination with the Ministry of Education and Technical Education to regularly follow up on the health status of students through school health teams.

The Ministry issued a package of preventive and therapeutic advice to protect children, foremost of which is the need to adhere to washing hands constantly, use tissues when coughing and sneezing, and ensure good ventilation of rooms and closed places, in addition to keeping the sick child at home until he fully recovers to prevent transmission of the infection to his colleagues.

She called for adherence to the timetable for compulsory vaccinations, and taking the seasonal influenza vaccination for eligible groups, stressing that if the child is infected, he must be given adequate fluids, because fear and crying increase the difficulty of breathing, and strongly warned against giving antibiotics without medical advice because the disease is viral and antibiotics do not affect it.