Parents and carers in West Yorkshire asked to be on the lookout for symptoms of Group A streptococcus, or ‘Strep A’, in children (commonly called scarlet fever)
For more information on scarlet fever please visit the NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/scarlet-fever/
Parents and carers in West Yorkshire are being asked to be on the lookout for symptoms of Group A Streptococcus, or ‘GAS’, in children (more commonly known as scarlet fever). Symptoms include sore throat, headache, fever and a fine, pinkish or red body rash. On darker skin the rash can be more difficult to detect visually. It will have a sandpapery feel when you rub your hand over a child’s skin.
Parents and carers who identify these symptoms should contact NHS 111 online, call NHS 111 or their GP because early treatment with oral antibiotics is important to reduce the risk of complications, such as pneumonia or a bloodstream infection.
If your child has scarlet fever keep them at home until at least 24 hours after the start of antibiotic treatment to avoid spreading the infection to others.
Parents and carers are advised to call 999 or go to A&E only if your child is having noisy or difficulty breathing, there are pauses in your child’s breathing, your child’s skin, tongue or lips are blue and/or your child is floppy, drowsy and or will not wake up.
The UK Health Security Agency advises that Group A streptococcus (GAS) is a common bacteria, which lots of people carry in their throats and on their skin. It doesn’t always result in illness. However, it does cause several infections, some mild and some more serious. Whilst infections are still uncommon, there has been an increase in cases this year, particularly in children under 10.
For more information on scarlet fever please visit the NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/scarlet-fever/
West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership (WY HCP) is set to once again run ‘Together We Can’ this winter. The campaign helps people access health and care services at the right time and place.
Dr Sohail Abbas, Deputy Medical Director, NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board and Chair of the Health Inequalities Network, for WY HCP said: “We are delighted to launch year two of our fellowship now even bigger than before. If you are passionate about making a real difference to our local communities this could be the programme for you. That might be about tackling health inequalities, addressing barriers that people affected by trauma can experience when accessing services, protecting our environment or helping to prevent suicide.”
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