Health experts reassure Scottish parents over Strep A worries
Public Health Scotland says complications from the infection are "rare" after the deaths of six children in England and Wales.
Last updated 3rd Dec 2022
Scottish parents are being reassured that complications from Step A are "rare."
Public Health Scotland says it's working with the UK Health Security Agency to monitor the situation north of the border.
It's after six youngsters under the age of 10 have died with the rare infection in England and Wales since September.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said:
"Our sympathies go out to the families of those who have died from invasive group A streptococcal disease in England and Wales.
"Public Health Scotland is working closely with the UK Health Security Agency and is monitoring the situation in Scotland.
"It's understandable parents may be worried"
"While it is understandable that parents may be worried, we stress that complications from group A streptococcal infections are rare. In the vast majority of cases, it results in mild symptoms that can be treated with antibiotics.
"Basic hygiene measures should be followed to minimise spread, including thorough handwashing, and staying away from work, school or nursery if you have symptoms."
Health experts say increased social mixing could be to blame
A lack of mixing due to the Covid-19 pandemic could be behind a drop in immunity to infections such as Strep A, a leading expert has said.
Dr Simon Clarke, microbiologist at the University of Reading, said he had not seen any evidence that a new strain was behind the current crop of cases affecting children.
Four deaths from invasive infection have been reported so far in England and Wales.
Dr Clarke said that, if diagnosed quickly, Strep A can easily be treated with antibiotics.
He added: "I'm unaware of any factor linking these reported deaths, so it's impossible to link them, but I do expect there to be further cases over the coming weeks and months.
"It strikes me that as we are seeing with flu at the moment, lack of mixing in kids may have caused a drop in population-wide immunity that could increase transmission, particularly in school age children."
Professor Beate Kampmann, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: "Group A strep is a well known bacterium that usually causes fever and throat infections and sometimes a condition called scarlet fever. These tend to be fairly harmless.
"In very rare circumstances when the bacterium produces a toxin it can gain access to the bloodstream and cause really serious illness such as heart inflammation, necrotising fasciitis, sepsis and toxic shock with organ failure, and this unfortunately appears to have been the case of the tragic deaths of the schoolchildren."
She said that "if parents are concerned about their child looking very ill with symptoms of fever, vomiting, muscle aches, and rash they should always promptly seek medical advice."