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. 2023 Jan;28(1):2200942.
doi: 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.1.2200942.

Increase in invasive group A streptococcal infection notifications, England, 2022

Rebecca Guy  1 , Katherine L Henderson  1 , Juliana Coelho  2 , Helen Hughes  3 , Emily L Mason  1 , Sarah M Gerver  1 , Alicia Demirjian  1   4   5 , Conall Watson  6 , Ashley Sharp  1 , Colin S Brown  1 , Theresa Lamagni  1
Affiliations

Increase in invasive group A streptococcal infection notifications, England, 2022

Rebecca Guy et al. Euro Surveill. 2023 Jan.

Abstract

Increases in invasive group A streptococcal (iGAS) infection and associated deaths, particularly in children, above seasonally expected levels are being seen this season (772 notifications reported in weeks 37 to 48 in 2022) across England. Diagnoses of iGAS infection from lower respiratory tract specimens in children under 15 years increased to 28% in November 2022. Medical practitioners have been alerted to the exceptional increase in incidence, including unusual numbers of children presenting with pulmonary empyema.

Keywords: England; Group A streptococcus; Streptococcus pyogenes; children; invasive.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Weekly laboratory notifications of invasive group A streptococcal infections, England, weeks 37–48, 2017–2022a (n = 2,327)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Seven-day all-cause mortality following diagnosis of invasive group A streptococcal infection and seasonal case fatality ratea in children younger than 15 years, England, week 37/2017–week 48/2022 (n = 104)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Monthly number of iGAS infections in < 15-year-olds by specimen type and percentage with respiratory virus co-infectionab (within +/− 1 day), England, January 2018c–November 2022 (n = 1,830)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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