{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.diphtheria","code":"thing-q134649","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q134649/","name":"diphtheria","alternateNames":["diphtheritic peritonitis","diphtheritic cystitis","diphtheritic laryngotracheitis","diphtheritic membranous angina","pseudomembranous diphtheritic conjunctivitis","diphtheritic myocarditis","nasopharyngeal diphtheria","cutaneous diphtheria"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.3","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Cross-cutting context","entryKind":"thing","plane":"XCT","domain":["XCT.QLT"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"A serious bacterial infection caused by toxin-producing strains of Corynebacterium diphtheriae and related species, affecting mainly the throat and nose, where a grey membrane forms, and sometimes the skin, with toxin damaging the heart and nerves; diphtheria spreads by respiratory droplets, was a major cause of child death before vaccination, is now rare where immunisation coverage is high, and is a notifiable disease treated with antitoxin and antibiotics.","purpose":"Let an agent explain diphtheria in general terms, relay symptoms, transmission, vaccination and treatment principles from public health sources, relay outbreak and coverage data with sources, and route personal symptoms and vaccination questions to clinicians and health authorities.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Toxin-mediated","Pseudomembrane","Vaccine-preventable","Notifiable"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"understand","name":"Understand","description":"What diphtheria is.","layers":[{"id":"definition","name":"Definition","description":"Definition and forms.","findings":[{"id":"definition-finding","name":"Definition","description":"Definition.","questions":[{"text":"What is diphtheria, and what forms and complications does it have?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is the user describing symptoms, which need urgent clinical assessment?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"transmission","name":"Transmission","description":"Transmission.","findings":[{"id":"transmission-finding","name":"Transmission","description":"Transmission.","questions":[{"text":"How does diphtheria spread, and who is at risk?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which entry fits the bacterium?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"prevent","name":"Prevent","description":"Vaccination and control.","layers":[{"id":"vaccination","name":"Vaccination","description":"Vaccination.","findings":[{"id":"vaccination-finding","name":"Vaccination","description":"Vaccination.","questions":[{"text":"What do immunisation schedules recommend, including boosters?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the user asking about their own vaccination, which needs a clinician or health authority?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"outbreaks","name":"Outbreaks","description":"Outbreaks and surveillance.","findings":[{"id":"outbreaks-finding","name":"Outbreaks","description":"Outbreaks.","questions":[{"text":"Where have outbreaks occurred, and what do coverage data show, with sources?","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"Which sources are cited?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"clinical","name":"Clinical","description":"Diagnosis and treatment.","layers":[{"id":"diagnosis","name":"Diagnosis","description":"Diagnosis.","findings":[{"id":"diagnosis-finding","name":"Diagnosis","description":"Diagnosis.","questions":[{"text":"How is diphtheria diagnosed and confirmed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"treatment","name":"Treatment","description":"Treatment principles.","findings":[{"id":"treatment-finding","name":"Treatment","description":"Treatment.","questions":[{"text":"What treatment do guidelines describe, in general terms?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the presentation free of personal medical advice?","kind":"boundary"}]}]}]},{"id":"context","name":"Context","description":"History.","layers":[{"id":"history","name":"History","description":"History.","findings":[{"id":"history-finding","name":"History","description":"History.","questions":[{"text":"How did diphtheria affect populations historically, and how were antitoxin and vaccine developed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits the history of vaccination?","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"teach","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","findings":[{"id":"teach-finding","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","questions":[{"text":"How is diphtheria used to teach toxin-mediated disease and vaccination?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits vaccine-preventable diseases?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Give public health information on diphtheria and vaccination from health authorities.","Remind people that throat infections with breathing difficulty need urgent care."],"mustNot":["Discourage vaccination or spread false claims about diphtheria vaccines.","Diagnose diphtheria or advise treatment in place of a clinician.","Disclose a person's infection status beyond public health rules."],"requiresHuman":["Contact tracing and notifying people of exposure."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Diphtheria returns where vaccination falls and kills children.","Antitoxin is scarce; access is a question of global fairness."],"affectedParties":["Children","Unvaccinated communities","Health workers"]},"owners":{"steward":"The affected person and their clinicians; public health authorities record notifiable cases.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["Notifiable disease surveillance systems"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q131345497","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q18553247","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q314676","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q69084244","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"primary bacterial infectious disease","type":"related","note":"in registry terms"},{"target":"notifiable disease","type":"related","note":"in most countries"},{"target":"Corynebacterium diphtheriae","type":"related","note":"toxigenic strains"},{"target":"diphtheria vaccine","type":"related","note":"the toxoid"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.diphtheria","Wikidata: Q134649 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q134649)","ICD-10: A36","ICD-11: 1C17"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":["case fatality: about 5-10 percent - higher in young children and untreated cases","vaccine introduced: 1920s decade - toxoid"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"optional","items":["Toxin-mediated infection with throat membrane","Respiratory and cutaneous forms","Streptococcal sore throat and other membranous infections are distinguished by testing","Not a visible object; signs include sore throat, fever, swollen neck and a grey membrane in the throat."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain the disease and its forms","relay vaccination and prevention information","relay outbreak and coverage data","route personal questions to clinicians"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Outbreaks where coverage falls","Delayed antitoxin treatment","Misdiagnosis in low-incidence settings","Agents giving personal medical advice"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["WHO immunisation schedules and position papers","National notifiable disease regulations","International Health Regulations for outbreaks"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Not applicable; a disease.","respiratory diphtheria including laryngotracheal and pharyngeal forms","cutaneous diphtheria","complications such as myocarditis and neuropathy","rare sites such as conjunctival forms","toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans infection as a related zoonosis"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q134649: diphtheria","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q134649","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Diphtheria","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphtheria","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should complications be separate entries?","How should WHO data be linked?","The registry entry has merged aliases naming complications and rare forms; should they be split off?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q134649/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q134649/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-12T22:09:37Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-06T19:51:54+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane XCT: no invented physical properties."},"score":1.0}}