Most impoant element in treatment of diphtheria is

When a case is suspected as diphtheria, the antidiphtheritic serum should be given immediately as the moality rate increases with delay in staing Antitoxin treatment. In moderate cases, the dosage recommended is 20000 units intramuscularly and in severely ill cases 50,000- 1,00,000 units are injected, half the dose being given intravenously. Antitoxin treatment is generally not indicated in cutaneous diphtheria as the causative strains are usually non-toxigenic. Reference: Textbook of Microbiology, Ananthanarayan and paniker's; 10th edition, pg no: 245