Strep-A killed 30 children in the UK since mid-September

• The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) claimed 122 persons have died.
• Three further child fatalities have occurred in Wales and Northern Ireland combined.
• It said that the data reveals an “out-of-season spike” in strep A.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) claimed 122 persons have died in England as a result of the invasive form of the bacterial infection.

25 of these deaths were people under the age of 18. Three further child fatalities have occurred in Wales and Northern Ireland combined. Public Health Scotland announced on Wednesday that two kids had passed away.

Scarlet fever, strep throat, and the skin condition impetigo, which causes ulcers, are just a few of the infections that group A strep bacteria can cause.

Although the majority of cases are minor, strep can occasionally result in a fatal invasive Group When a streptococcal infection (IGas) penetrates the body’s defenses and spreads to organs or tissues where it is not typically found, such the blood, lungs, or muscles Necrotizing fasciitis, often known as “the flesh-eating disease,” and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, which can result in low blood pressure and organ damage, are two of the most severe but uncommon types of iGAS.

In comparison to 194 cases in the same age range over the course of the 2017–2018 season, the last time there were comparable high infection rates, the UKHSA recorded 151 iGAS cases in children aged one to four between 19 September and 25 December.

According to the health agency, iGAS infections are still uncommon, and most of the time, those over 45 are affected.

However, it said that the data reveals an “out-of-season spike” in strep A and scarlet fever infections, as well as a higher number of cases of both diseases than in a typical year. Strep A causes a bumpy rash and flu-like symptoms in scarlet fever.

This season, there have been 33,836 reports of scarlet fever, compared to 4,672 at the same time in 2017–2018.

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