{"title":"Impact of lack of immunisation against diphtheria in the Australian military during the Second World War.","authors":"G Dennis Shanks","doi":"10.1111/imj.70211","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Immunisation has been critically important to military medicine. During the Second World War, Australian soldiers were immunised against smallpox, typhoid and tetanus. A conscious decision not to immunise soldiers against diphtheria was taken, although the toxoid had been available in Australia since 1927. This was due to the large number of soldiers thought to have pre-existing immunity (Schick test negative) and adverse events experienced during mass immunisation. Diphtheria became an operational problem in Palestine in 1940. Epidemics of diphtheria in prisoner of war (POW) camps had lethal outcomes due to lack of anti-sera. Many tropical ulcers likely had a component of diphtheria infection. Post-war problems with diphtheria have largely been limited to under-immunised populations in refugee situations, although diphtheria is again being seen in Australian civilians. Toxoid immunisation against environmental pathogens such as diphtheria and tetanus must be maintained to avoid preventable disease during any future war or disaster.</p>","PeriodicalId":13625,"journal":{"name":"Internal Medicine Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Internal Medicine Journal","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/imj.70211","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MEDICINE, GENERAL & INTERNAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Immunisation has been critically important to military medicine. During the Second World War, Australian soldiers were immunised against smallpox, typhoid and tetanus. A conscious decision not to immunise soldiers against diphtheria was taken, although the toxoid had been available in Australia since 1927. This was due to the large number of soldiers thought to have pre-existing immunity (Schick test negative) and adverse events experienced during mass immunisation. Diphtheria became an operational problem in Palestine in 1940. Epidemics of diphtheria in prisoner of war (POW) camps had lethal outcomes due to lack of anti-sera. Many tropical ulcers likely had a component of diphtheria infection. Post-war problems with diphtheria have largely been limited to under-immunised populations in refugee situations, although diphtheria is again being seen in Australian civilians. Toxoid immunisation against environmental pathogens such as diphtheria and tetanus must be maintained to avoid preventable disease during any future war or disaster.
期刊介绍:
The Internal Medicine Journal is the official journal of the Adult Medicine Division of The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP). Its purpose is to publish high-quality internationally competitive peer-reviewed original medical research, both laboratory and clinical, relating to the study and research of human disease. Papers will be considered from all areas of medical practice and science. The Journal also has a major role in continuing medical education and publishes review articles relevant to physician education.