The European Laboratory Working Group on Diphtheria: A global microbiologic network

Increasing international travel, migration to and from epidemic areas, and the emergence of epidemic Corynebacterium diphtheriae strains globally have highlighted the need for better microbiologic surveillance and greater clinical and laboratory awareness. As part of the strategy developed by the World Health Organization, one major goal is particularly applicable to the microbiology and epidemiology of diphtheria: to improve surveillance for early detection of emerging and reemerging diseases by establishing a network of national and international laboratories. The European Laboratory Working Group on Diphtheria (ELWGD) was therefore formed in 1993 as a result of the epidemic situation in Eastern Europe. Currently, there is participation from 20 different countries from Western and Eastern Europe, the United States, Australia, and Southeast Asia. ELWGD is a prime example of a collaborative and coordinated approach to the microbiology of diphtheria and should serve as a potential model for other infectious diseases networks.