Berlin boy dies from diphtheria in rare German case, paper says
BERLIN, Jan 29 (Reuters) - A 10-year-old boy has died from a diphtheria infection in a Berlin hospital, German newspaper Tagesspiegel reported on Wednesday, saying the child had not had the well-established vaccination.
The child, from the nearby state of Brandenburg, contracted the illness in October and had been in intensive care ever since, says Tagesspiegel.
According to Tagesspiegel, citing Brandenburg's health ministry, the boy had not been vaccinated against the illness. When reached by Reuters, the health ministry declined to comment on individual cases.
Diphtheria is a highly infectious illness that is very rare in Germany. Effective vaccines have helped keep cases low. Germany's public health body, the Robert Koch Institute, said that in 2023 an adult died from diphtheria in Germany and two adults died in 2024.
The institute says on its website that global cases have plunged by more than 90% between 1980 and 2010, citing the wide introduction of diphtheria vaccination.
Germany's expert panel on vaccinations known as STIKO, whose recommendations are widely followed by physicians, says that children should receive a series of protective shots against the bacterial disease, ideally in combination with vaccines against other infections.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Daily Record
Lidl urgently recalls breakfast staple over concerns it contains pieces of metal
Shoppers have since been urged not to consume the product. Lidl shoppers have been warned not to eat a batch of hash browns. There are fears that the breakfast favourite may contain foreign bodies, making them "unsafe to eat." The German supermarket giant has issued a recall for its popular Harvest Basket Hash Browns after it was discovered that they "may contain pieces of metal." A food alert posted to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has advised customers that the recall affects a 750g pack size, with the batch code 5144L and the best before date of May 24, 2027. The full risk statement posted to the FSA read: "This product may contain metal pieces which presents a choking hazard and makes it unsafe to eat." Due to the potential health risk, the supermarket has since advised customers who have bought the affected hash browns not to eat them but to return them to store where a full refund will be provided. For further information, shoppers are also being advised to contact the customer care line on or 0203 966 5566. Lidl said in its recall notice: "We apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your cooperation." What is a food alert? Food alerts are issued by the FSA when there is a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold, leading to it either being 'withdrawn' or 'recalled' from store shelves. In response, the food watchdog issues alerts to let consumers and local authorities know the problems associated with the affected product. There are also 'allergy' alerts when a food is found to contain missing or incorrect allergy labelling, meaning that they could pose a potential health risk to certain customers. We recently reported that Iceland had recalled its popular 4 Sub Rolls because they contained undeclared barley (gluten), with the best before date June 2, 2025 affected. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. On a more serious note, we also shared with customers that Brits had been urged to "dispose of" a popular brand of American sweets after they contained ingredients that were " compliant with UK laws". The FSA issued an urgent 'Food Alert For Action' that urged UK retailers to stop selling four types of Jolly Rancher confectionary products as they contained two mineral oils, with one being linked to an increase in cancer. All batch codes and dates of each bag of sweets were affected as they include Mineral Oil Aromatic Hydrocarbons, (MOAH), and Mineral Oil Saturated Hydrocarbons, (MOSH), both which are not allowed in the UK. The Hershey Company, owner of Jolly Rancher, is said to have be working closely with the food watchdog to remove non-compliant and unsafe products from the UK market since 2024. While the company made the decision not to supply the UK market going forward, its products are still imported to the country, which is why the FSA has urged enforcing authorities to take action.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Reuters
US health chief says Sen. Cassidy promised pick on vaccine panel
WASHINGTON, June 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he told U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy that he would allow Cassidy to pick a candidate for a key panel of vaccine advisers. Cassidy, a Republican, serves as chairman the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. "What I told Senator Cassidy is that I would allow him to put one of his candidates on, which we're going to do," Kennedy said on Thursday during an interview on Fox News' "The Story with Martha MacCallum," referring to the vaccine advisory panel. Kennedy on Wednesday named eight members to serve on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, which advises the agency on who should get the shots after they are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, after gutting the panel last week.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: Kennedy's new vaccine adviser was expert witness against Merck vaccine
June 12 (Reuters) - One of the new vaccine advisers picked by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has earned thousands of dollars as an expert witness in litigation against Merck's (MRK.N), opens new tab Gardasil vaccine, court records show. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist who publicly criticized COVID-era lockdowns, is one of eight new members named by Kennedy on Wednesday to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a highly influential panel that recommends which shots should be administered to the American public. Kennedy fired the entire previous 17-member committee of expert vaccine advisers this week, claiming they were "plagued with persistent conflicts of interest" from financial ties to drugmakers. Kulldorff recently served as an expert witness for plaintiffs who accused Merck of concealing the risks of Gardasil, which is intended to prevent cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). In March, a federal judge in North Carolina ruled in favor of Merck in one of those cases that included about 200 lawsuits. At a deposition in October, Kulldorff testified that the plaintiffs paid him $400 an hour and he had already billed for about $33,000 in legal work on the case through late September. He said he also received a $4,000 retainer in the North Carolina case, according to court documents. Kulldorff is also listed as an expert witness in a similar case pending against Merck in Los Angeles state court, records show. Under ACIP's rules, committee members cannot serve as a "paid litigation consultant or expert witness in litigation involving a vaccine manufacturer' during their tenure on the panel. Prior work as an expert witness against drugmakers may require a waiver from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and recusal from votes involving Merck and HPV vaccines. The agency has said in its rules it "will generally consider issuance of waivers in specific situations." Kulldorff did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Merck declined to comment. A spokesman for Kennedy's Health and Human Services Department said on Wednesday that "all newly appointed ACIP members were thoroughly vetted." HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Kulldorff.
