Strep A: London child among six deaths from bacterial disease

The child is one of six in England to have died after contracting the bug, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said.

The pupil attended St John's School, Ealing, and died from a severe, invasive form of the bacterial illness Group A Streptococcal.

The UKHSA said it was "saddened" to hear of the child's death.

Dr Yimmy Chow, health protection consultant at UKHSA London, said: "We are extremely saddened to hear about the death of a child at St John's Primary School, and our thoughts are with their family, friends and the school community.

"Working with Ealing Council public health team, we have provided precautionary advice to the school community to help prevent further cases and we continue to monitor the situation closely."

Group A Streptococcal (GAS) infection can cause scarlet fever.

However, the UKHSA told the BBC it was important people understood that scarlet fever is a mild illness and the GAS bacteria that cause it only rarely become invasive.

It is this form of the bacterial infection - invasive Group A Streptococcal (iGAS) - that can lead to serious illness.

Dr Liz Whittaker, a expert in paediatric infectious diseases and immunology at Imperial College London, said GAS was a "very common" infection.

"What we worry about is when it becomes invasive and severe," she explained.

She said parents of primary school children "should not worry, but they should know when to seek medical attention - if a child's temperature is not settling after four or five days or they're breathing fast or lethargic or not drinking properly, then get advice from 111 online or by phone."

Dr Whittaker added that there had been very few cases like this in the past two years due to coronavirus restrictions.

"We are seeing more of Strep Group A circulating at the moment, and whenever you see more of anything, you see more the serious side of it."

What is Strep A?

Group A streptococcal (GAS) infection is caused by strains of the streptococcus pyogenes bacterium

The bacteria can live on hands or the throat for long enough to allow easy spread between people through sneezing, kissing and skin contact

Most infections cause mild illnesses such as "strep throat", scarlet fever or skin infections

The bacteria rarely infects healthy people but if it does get into the body, causing serious and even life-threatening conditions it is known as invasive GAS (iGAS).

-bbc