Health Update: Russian kisses

ANYONE planning a trip to Russia should ensure that they have recently been immunised against diphtheria, doctors from Finland warn in the Lancet. The number of cases has risen sharply in Russia over the past three years, especially in St Petersburg, where 845 cases were reported last year. Diphtheria begins with sore throat and fever but serious complications can develop and it may be fatal. The doctors describe how a 43-year- old Finn is thought to have contracted the disease by kissing someone at a party in St Petersburg. Two months after falling ill, he was still in hospital with neurological disease and muscular weakness.