Volume 29, Number 10—October 2023
Dispatch
Imported Toxigenic Corynebacterium Diphtheriae in Refugees with Polymicrobial Skin Infections, Germany, 2022
Benedikt Daniel Spielberger
, Anna Hansel, Alea Nazary, Eva-Maria Kleißle, Claus-Georg Lehr, Marcel Utz, Juliana Hofer, Siegbert Rieg1, and Winfried V. Kern1
, Anna Hansel, Alea Nazary, Eva-Maria Kleißle, Claus-Georg Lehr, Marcel Utz, Juliana Hofer, Siegbert Rieg1, and Winfried V. Kern1
Table 2
Microbiology test results for 27 refugees with imported toxigenic Corynebacterium diphtheriae in polymicrobial skin infections, Germany, 2022*
| Microbiology result | No. (%) |
|---|---|
| No. C. diphtheriae isolates | 27 |
| Any skin wound | 25 (93) |
| Skin wounds with toxigenic C. diphtheriae | 25 |
| Toxigenic C. diphtheriae in skin wound and throat swab |
5 (20) |
| Any throat swab with C. diphtheriae | 7 (26) |
| And without skin wounds |
2 (29) |
| Patients without skin wounds | 2 (7) |
| And wth C. diphtheriae in throat swab |
2 (100) |
| Contact persons screened |
154 |
| Co-colonization of skin infections (% of all skin wounds) | |
| C. diphtheriae, Staphylococcus. aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes | 21 (84) |
| C. diphtheriae, S. pyogenes, no S. aureus | 3 (12) |
| C. diphtheriae, no S. pyogenes, no S. aureus |
1 (4) |
| Antimicrobial resistance | |
| Total S. aureus isolates | 21 |
| MSSA | 11 (52) |
| Community-acquired MRSA | 10 (48) |
| Hospital-acquired MRSA | 0 |
| Total no. S. pyogenes isolates | 24 |
| Resistance to clindamycin | 3 (13) |
*Values are no. (%) except as indicated. MRSA, methicillin-resistant S. aureus; MSSA, methicillin-sensitive S. aureus.
1These senior authors contributed equally to this article.
Page created: July 31, 2023
Page updated: September 20, 2023
Page reviewed: September 20, 2023
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.