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Date Published: 09/12/2022
ARCHIVED - Two children dead from Strep A in Spain and 14 hospitalised
The cases of Strep A, which has claimed the lives of 15 children in the UK, have all been detected in Madrid
The UK has activated a health alert following the death of 15 children to Streptococcus A, and now Spain's Regional Ministry of Health has confirmed that two children between the ages of 1 and 12 have died and 14 youngsters have been hospitalised with the disease.
The incidences have all occurred in Madrid since October 19 with a total of 16 cases detected. Of these, two girls succumbed to severe symptoms and passed away, one on October 25 and the other on December 2.
According to the Ministry, the data corresponds to "normal parameters in terms of the disease", so although there is concern, an alert similar to that in Britain has not been activated.
Since December 5, the UK's Department of Health has been studying the frequency of Strep A to determine whether it is higher than that detected in the pre-pandemic stage of the Covid-19 health crisis or not.
Strep A is a highly contagious bacterium that leads to an infection that can cause serious illness and complications. Similar to Covid, people can carry it without being aware, but can pass it on to others who might become sick.
It's spread through coughs, sneezes and close contact with infected people, and outbreaks tend to occur in places where there are predominantly young or elderly, such as nurseries, schools and care/residential homes.
Strep A has a number of flu-like symptoms, which in most cases are mild and can be treated with antibiotics, such as a sore throat or rash, high temperatures, swollen glands, muscle aches and scarlet fever, which predominantly affects children.
However, in severe cases, Strep A can also cause 'invasive group A streptococcal infection' or IGAS, which can be life-threatening and early medical assistance is crucial. Symptoms include a fever (above 38ºC) and sever muscle aches.
Image: Wikimedia commons
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