A four-year-old girl has died of suspected diphtheria at a children's hospital in Palermo, Sicily, in what health officials describe as Italy's first fatal diphtheria case in a decade. Anna Rosa Bartolotta died at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Civico hospital, after the diphtheria toxin severely damaged her heart, liver and colon.
The child's parents, who chose not to vaccinate her despite diphtheria vaccination being mandatory in Italy since 1939, initially brought her to the Villa Sofia Cervello hospital on Saturday, mistaking the symptoms for tonsillitis. The parents, originally from the Zen neighbourhood, told authorities they feared a link between vaccines and autism because a relative was autistic. Health director Domenico Cipolla said there was little doubt diphtheria was the cause, though confirmation awaits results from the national health institute expected Monday.
Regional Health Councillor Marcello Caruso said laboratory analysis was underway to formally confirm the diagnosis. Italy has recorded only five diphtheria cases since 2000, none previously fatal. The last known European case occurred four years ago in a community in Spain.