The BC Centre for Disease Control says the bacteria that causes strep throat has been associated with the deaths of four children in the province over the last month, and instances of the infection are on the rise.
Most people know streptococcus pyogenes, or group A strep, for the sore throat it often causes, but the BCCDC says fewer are aware that the bacteria can be much more dangerous. If it gets into a person’s lungs, blood or the area around their muscles, it can result in pneumonia or sepsis.
The risk of contracting a streptococcal infection is greatest in the winter, when viral respiratory infections are circulating, the BCCDC says. It says each of the four children who died since mid-December were also battling respiratory infections. Two of them had influenza and two had human metapneumovirus.
Deaths are extremely rare, but appear to occurring more frequently. In B.C. in 2022, just one child under the age of 10 died while suffering from group A strep. In 2023, five children died, three of them since mid-December. The fourth child to die in the last month was in 2024.
Overall infections are up too. In 2023, 586 cases were reported in B.C., up from 466 in 2022 and 303 in 2016.
And it’s a national trend. The Public Health Agency of Canada says it had 4,600 samples of the bacteria submitted to it last year, the highest annual number it’s received since it received 3,236 samples in 2019.
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The BCCDC says those at the highest risk of severe infection are young children and elderly people, people with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, or chronic heart or lung disease, and people who take certain medications such as steroids.
The centre says there are a number of notable symptoms parents and caregivers can watch out for. If they notice them, they’re instructed to take seek emergency care.
- A fever lasting more than five days in a child.
- A fever accompanied with a fine red rash, a full body sunburn-like rash, and a red, swollen tongue.
- A fever in a child under three months, or with preexisting health conditions.
- A child who is struggling to breathe.
- Pale skin and whitish or blue lips.
- A child who is very sleepy or struggles to wake up.
- A child who falls very ill, very quickly.
The BCCDC says people can protect against the bacteria by washing their hands, checking any wounds for signs of infection, staying up-to-date on vaccinations and staying home when they are sick.
