The aim of this virtual training is to provide participants with in-depth knowledge of the agents causing diphtheria, and their diagnosis, clinical definition, antibiotic resistance and taxonomy. Diphtheria surveillance, vaccination strategies, and treatment protocols will also be covered. This webinar will also allow participants to gain practical bioinformatics skills for genotyping C. diphtheriae and C. ulcerans strains.

 Dates and Duration: March 5th and 7th morning, 2025. Two half-days. 

Location: Online - Find the link after enrolment. 

Audience: Public health microbiologists, epidemiologists, and bioinformaticians interested in diphtheria. 

Objectives:  Upon completion of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Understand which are the causative agents of diphtheria
• Learn about diagnostic techniques and clinical definition of diphtheria
• Perform genotyping of C. diphtheriae and C. ulcerans strains for epidemiological surveillance and outbreak investigation
• Understand antibiotic resistance breakpoints and resistance patterns of diphtheria agents.
• Understand diphtheria surveillance at national and international scales
• Gain knowledge about prevention, case management and transmission control approaches, including vaccination, antibiotic treatment and diphtheria antitoxin use.
  

Participation: This course is open for public enrolment 2 weeks in advance.