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[HEALTH] · Italy · 89 sources

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Palermo: Parents investigated after child dies of diphtheria

A four-year-old girl, Anna Rosa Bartolotta, has died in Palermo from diphtheria, a highly contagious bacterial infection. The child was unvaccinated, a decision her parents reportedly made due to concerns regarding a potential link between vaccines and autism, a belief reinforced by a previous case involving a cousin.

The Prosecutor's Office in Palermo has placed the parents under investigation for manslaughter by omission. Simultaneously, the Juvenile Prosecutor's Office has opened a civil investigation to evaluate parental responsibility regarding the couple's other four unvaccinated children, who have since been immunized.

Medical authorities are monitoring a four-year-old cousin who also tested positive for the bacterium but remains in stable condition due to prior vaccination. The incident has triggered a surge in vaccine requests, with a 10% increase reported by pediatricians in Palermo within 48 hours of the death. Health officials are currently working to identify “patient zero” to prevent a wider outbreak, noting that vaccination coverage in Sicily remains below the necessary threshold for herd immunity.

Entities

Anna Rosa Bartolotta · Domenico Cipolla · Istituto Superiore di Sanità · Marcello Caruso · Ospedale Civico · Ospedale Civico di Palermo · Ospedale dei Bambini Di Cristina · Palermo · Procura di Palermo · Prosecutor's Office of Palermo

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Sources

Bimba di 4 anni muore di difterite [www.terranostranews.it]