Investigations are also underway following reports of an increase in lower respiratory tract group A strep infections in children over the past few weeks, which have caused severe illness. NICE's guideline on antimicrobial prescribing for acute sore throat was developed to help limit antibiotic use and reduce antimicrobial resistance. The guidance advises that sore throat is self-limiting. Also, it recommends using clinical scoring criteria such as Centor or FeverPAIN to help identify people who are more or most likely to benefit from an antibiotic. However, the guidance does not cover the potential use of rapid tests for strep A to increase diagnostic confidence of strep A infection and guide antimicrobial prescribing. Complications can occur after a strep throat infection. This can happen if the bacteria spread to other parts of the body. There are localised antibiotic shortages in some areas at times, most commonly shortages of antibiotics in liquid forms.

Honey. Honey can be used to soothe sore throats. Don't give honey to children younger than 12 months. Data published by Public Health Wales and Public Health Scotland is also available. Thursday 8 December 2022

Editorial Sources and Fact-Checking

So far this season (from 19 September to 15 January), there have been 38,429 notifications of scarlet fever. In the last comparably high season of 2017 to 2018 (September to August), there were 30,768 scarlet fever notifications overall across the year. There has been a reduction in the weekly number of notifications over the last few weeks, suggesting a decrease in transmission of the bacteria.

It is important that we continue to help stop the spread of all germs in the community and to vulnerable groups. Wash your hands regularly and thoroughly, catch coughs and sneezes in a tissue, and keep your home well-ventilated. If you are unwell with any infection you should avoid visiting vulnerable people, and stay away from school, nursery or work if you are unwell with a fever. Thursday 12 January 2023 Drink plenty of water. Keeping a sore throat lubricated and moist eases swallowing and helps prevent dehydration. Someone who tests positive for strep throat but has no symptoms (called a “carrier”) usually does not need antibiotics. They are less likely to spread the bacteria to others and very unlikely to get complications. Sadly, so far this season there have been 190 deaths across all age groups in England. This figure includes 30 children under 18 in England. In the 2017 to 2018 season, there were 355 deaths in total across the season, including 27 deaths in children under 18. These are usually mild, but can sometimes be life-threatening. What about more serious Strep A infections?

iGAS cases across all age groups, compared to 2,967 across the whole of the last comparably high season in 2017 to 2018 Early treatment of scarlet fever with antibiotics is important to reduce the risk of a more serious infection and transmission to others. Children should stay off school or nursery and adults should stay off work for 24 hours after antibiotics have started. Andrew Fine, MD, MPH, an associate physician at Boston Children’s Hospital and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, describes the study’s approach to reducing hospital visits for strep testing as “a great strategy,” but says that home testing has some limitations. So far this season (from 12 September 2022 to 16 April 2023), there have been 54,394 notifications of scarlet fever. In the last comparable high season (from September 2017 to September 2018), there were 30,768 scarlet fever notifications overall across the year.

Othman AM, Assayaghi RM, Al-Shami HZ, Saif-Ali R. Asymptomatic carriage of Streptococcus pyogenes among school children in Sana’a city, Yemen. BMC Research Notes. 2019;12(1):339. doi:10.1186/s13104-019-4370-5. So far this season there have been 5 recorded deaths within 7 days of an iGAS diagnosis in children under 10 in England. During the last high season for group A strep infection (2017 to 2018) there were 4 deaths in children under 10 in the equivalent period.Researchers in the Pediatrics Service of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology medical department (MIT Medical), invited parents of patients aged 5 to 16 who had either a sore throat or upper respiratory infection to perform a home strep test on their children. CookieYes sets this cookie to record the default button state of the corresponding category and the status of CCPA. It works only in coordination with the primary cookie.