Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Nov 4:148:e278.
doi: 10.1017/S0950268820002642.

Scarlet fever outbreak in a primary and middle school in Germany: importance of case ascertainment and risk communication

N J Saad  1   2 , N Muller  1   3 , J Walter  1   3 , L Murajda  4
Affiliations

Scarlet fever outbreak in a primary and middle school in Germany: importance of case ascertainment and risk communication

N J Saad et al. Epidemiol Infect. .

Abstract

A cluster of 18 scarlet fever cases and large illness absenteeism (32%, 58/184) in a school prompted concern and further investigation. We conducted telephone interviews with parents to ascertain cases and better comprehend parents' views. We identified 19 cases, of which 13 reported scarlet fever diagnosis by a physician and only seven fulfilled the probable case definition. We concluded that the outbreak was far smaller than suspected and found that communication and reporting could be improved. Accurate information and communication is essential in an outbreak; the school's concern could have been alleviated sooner and response measures better targeted.

Keywords: Field epidemiology; outbreak; risk communication; scarlet fever.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

None.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Epidemiological curve. Number of scarlet fever cases notified by the school by date of symptom onset, Berlin, 2020.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Timeline of actions by the school, scarlet fever outbreak, Berlin, 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Rodriguez-Iturbe B and Haas M (2016) Post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis In Ferretti JJ, Stevens DL and Fischetti VA (eds), Streptococcus Pyogenes: Basic Biology to Clinical Manifestations. [Internet]. Oklahoma City (OK): University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. - PubMed
    1. Streptococcus pyogenes-Infektionen (2020) Available at https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/Infekt/EpidBull/Merkblaetter/Ratgeber_Stre.... Accessed 11 June 2020.
    1. Katz AR and Morens DM (1992) Severe streptococcal infections in historical perspective. Clinical Infectious Diseases 14, 298–307. - PubMed
    1. Lamagni T et al. (2018) Resurgence of scarlet fever in England, 2014–16: a population-based surveillance study. The Lancet Infectious Diseases 18, 180–187. - PubMed
    1. Brockmann SO, Eichner L and Eichner M (2018) Constantly high incidence of scarlet fever in Germany. The Lancet Infectious Diseases 18, 499–500. - PubMed