Five more children are confirmed to have died in England from Strep A, according to the latest figures from the UKHSA.
Seven days ago, when the last figures were released, 16 were said to have died in England.
The latest figures say 21 are now known to have died in England from the most serious form of Strep A, called iGAS.
Three others are known to have died in Wales and Northern Ireland, bringing the total who have died since September to at least 24. The latest figures for the rest of the UK are yet to be released.
The latest UKHSA figures say that there have been 249 iGAS reports in children under 18 years in England in the season to date.
There have been 94 deaths in total in England, including the 21 children.
The children’s age group that has seen the most cases of iGAS is in those aged 1 to 4. The number of iGAS cases since September in that age group has now risen to 126, from 111 seven days ago.
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That compares to 194 cases in that age group across the whole year between 2017 and 2018, the last time the figures peaked.
This has led to a shortage of drugs, with pharmacists now able to supply an alternative form of penicillin without the patient having to go back to a GP if the prescribed one is out of stock.
Increased number of deaths in a ‘relatively short period’
The UKHSA said in its latest release: “Elevations in rates of iGAS infection in children in this early part of this season have resulted in an increased number of deaths over a relatively short period.”
It comes amid a spike in cases of scarlet fever, which is caused by the Strep A bacteria and can lead to iGAS in a small number of cases if the bacteria gets into the bloodstream.
Projected UKHSA figures show that the number of likely reportable cases of scarlet fever could be as high as 10,000 in the week ending 11 December.
Between 2017 and 2018, there were just 30,768 reports of scarlet fever across the entire year.
The organisation said the number of GP consultations are “currently showing exceptional levels of activity during this early point in the season”.
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Strep A driving ‘near record’ demand
It comes as the number of patients in hospital with flu in England has “skyrocketed” and Strep A is driving a “near record” demand for NHS 111 services.
An average of 1,939 people with flu were in hospital each day last week, up 67% on 1,162 the previous week, according to NHS England.
This is also a sharp increase on the daily average of 482 at the end of November.
There has also been a surge in the number of flu patients in critical care beds in England, with the daily average standing at 149 last week, up 72% from 87 the previous week.
At the equivalent point last year, the NHS had only two flu patients a day in critical care and 32 in general beds.
