Laboratory isolates of Corynebacterium diphtheriae and Corynebacterium ulcerans

Pharyngeal or cutaneous diphtheria is caused by toxigenic strains of C. diphtheriae and occasionally by C. ulcerans. The table below shows the isolates received by the Respiratory and Systemic Infection Laboratory (RSIL) for toxigenicity testing.

Laboratory isolates of Corynebacterium diphtheriae and Corynebacterium ulcerans England and Wales 1986-2010
Year	Toxigenic C. diphtheriae	Toxigenic C. ulcerans	Non-toxigenic C. diphtheriae	Total Corynebacteria Isolates
1986	8	1	4	13
1987	2	2	8	12
1988	4	1	6	11
1989	6	2	12	20
1990	4	0	17	21
1991	1	2	11	14
1992	3	1	55	59
1993	5	4	51	60
1994	4	4	48	56
1995	1	4	137	142
1996	3	5	130	138
1997	5	5	178	188
1998	3	2	162	167
1999	0	2	255	256
2000	1	7	294	301
2001	0	3	205	209
2002	6	2	143	152
2003	3	2	147	152
2004	0	1	130	131
2005	0	2	123	125
2006	1	2	68	71
2007	0	3	n/a	n/a
2008	2	3	n/a	n/a
2009	2	2	n/a	n/a
2010*	1	1	n/a	n/a

*provisional data

n/a = not currently available

Last reviewed: 25 March 2011