Diagnosis and Treatment

The “Schick test” can help to identify diphtheria sufferers in that it depends upon a patient’s failure to react to a small amount of purified toxin injected subcutaneously, thus signaling the absence of anti­toxin in the body, in turn indicating an absence of previous diphtheria infection. Because many factors can influence the accurate reading and interpreta­tion of such a test, most laboratory diagnosis de­pends upon culture of the organism itself on en­riched “blood agar” or the “Loftier slant” tellurite medium developed over a century ago. Penicillin, antitoxin, and maintenance of an open airway are the usual means of clinical intervention.