Spatial Analysis in Polymerase Chain Reaction for Detection of Corynebacterium diphtheriae Post-outbreak in Samarinda 2018

Abstract

Diphtheria is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium diphtheria, which primarily infects the throat and upper airways, and produces a toxin affecting other organs. In severe cases, it causes myocarditis or peripheral neuropathy. In Indonesia, diphtheria has once been an epidemic but then it has decreased in cases. Although the government succeeded in eliminating diphtheria cases in 1990 through immunization programs, the disease reappeared in 2009. At the end of 2017 until the beginning of 2018, outbreaks of diphtheria had been reported in several regions in Indonesia. One of which is in East Kalimantan, Samarinda. This study was conducted one year after the 2018 outbreak to find out whether diphtheria is still present in the community and to know the recent distribution of diphtheria patients. The study was conducted by examining the patient's oral mucosal swab. Data were obtained from the Medical Record and Clinical Pathology Laboratory of AWS Hospital and Dinas Kesehatan, Samarinda. A total of 43 samples were carried out by PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) laboratory test, using dtx primer and spatial analysis of patients detected with diphtheria using SatScan TM Software. The examination of 43 samples showed 2 samples positive for Corynebacterium diphtheriae. Both of the samples were female, lived in Air Hitam and Gunung Kelua, Samarinda Ulu District. The results of the spatial analysis showed that the location of patients of diphtheria bacteria detected did not indicate clustering.