This afternoon Brighton & Hove City Council confirmed a 12 year old student of Hove Park school has sadly died of invasive Strep A.
Director of public health at Brighton & Hove City Council Alistair Hill said:
“We offer our heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and the whole school community who will all be deeply affected by the very tragic loss of this young child, and we are providing our support to them at this incredibly sad time. While we cannot comment on individual cases, we ask that the privacy of the family is respected…
As a precaution, we have also been working closely with the school to raise awareness amongst parents and carers of the signs and symptoms of Group A Streptococcal infections, and what to do if a child develops these, including invasive Group A Streptococcal disease (iGAS)…
I would stress that contracting iGAS disease from another person is very rare. Most people who come into contact with Group A Streptococcal infections remain well and symptom-free – and therefore there is no reason for children to be kept home if well. However, if you feel that your child seems seriously unwell please contact NHS 111.”
The Royal College of General Practitioners has published this guidance yesterday in identifying the early symptoms
“The early symptoms of scarlet fever include:
- sore throat, headache, fever, nausea and vomiting
- after 12 to 48 hours, the characteristic red rash develops, usually first on the chest and stomach, then rapidly spreading to other parts of the body, making the skin have a sand-paper like feel to it. The scarlet rash may be harder to spot on darker skin, although the ‘sandpaper’ feel should be present
- patients usually have flushed red cheeks. They may also have a bright red ‘strawberry’ tongue.
In very rare occasions, the bacteria can get into the bloodstream or enclosed parts of the body like the chest and cause an illness called invasive Group A strep (iGAS).”
