NI girl aged 5 dies from illness linked to Strep A

A girl aged 5 has died from an illness linked to the bacterial infection strep A, according to BBC News NI. 

The girl became severely ill last week and was treated at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children. 

On Friday, the Public Health Agency (PHA) sent a letter to parents of P1 and P3 kids informing them that one of the pupils had a severe form of strep A, and asking them to take their children to a clinic to be seen by a doctor and receive a preventive course of antibiotics. 

BBC News NI says it understands the girl had been in intensive care but died on Monday. 

The Black Mountain Primary school is now undergoing a deep clean. 

On Monday, another school – Brackenagh West Primary School, confirmed dozens of its pupils were suffering from strep A infections. 

Parents have been told to be vigilant and authorities are reportedly working closely with those schools that are affected.

What is strep A? 

Most strep A infections are mild and include symptoms such as a sore throat or a skin infection that can be treated with antibiotics. But some who catch it get very sick. 

Some people develop scarlet fever, which causes a skin rash and flu-like symptoms including a high temperature. 

There were at least 104 cases of scarlet fever in Northern Ireland in November, up from 43 in October according to the latest figures. 

In really rare cases, strep A can cause invasive group A streptococcal infection – or iGAS, which can be deadly.

Invasive disease happens when the bacteria get past your body’s immune defences. 

In the rest of the UK, eight children have died due to complications from strep A since September. 

The government said during a similar period in 2017 – 2018 – the last “hgih season for iGAS infection” – there were four deaths in England. 

Warning signs of the invasive disease include:

• fever (a high temperature above 38C)
• severe muscle aches

Urgent, early medical help is essential.

The UKHSA advises that anyone with a high fever, severe muscle aches, pain in one area of the body and unexplained vomiting or diarrhoea should seek medical help immediately.

“The other thing to be aware of is that the treatment for strep A is an antibiotic called Penicillin V,” deputy chairperson of the Northern Ireland General Practitioners Committee Dr Frances O’Hagan said.

“Penicillin V does not taste very nice so children will not like it, but it’s very important that you get it into your child.

“And it’s a 10-day course, so it’s really important that you finish the 10 days.”

Why is there a rise in strep A cases? 

Doctors and health experts say parents must remain vigilant and not to panic because most cases of strep A are mild. 

The UK is experiencing an outbreak because for the two years in the pandemic, children didn’t mix and their systems are not immune to a number of different infections. 

Cases for both strep A and scarlet fever are expected to rise over the coming weeks. 

Experts say to keep sick children at home as it is highly contagious.