Really worrying about strep A

[QueenBean9]

I am usually pragmatic with this sort of stuff but what the hell is going on?!

I'm German and here, RSV is all over the news, not so much because children die but because hospitals struggle to cope

Yes I saw someone posting on Linkedin about the shortage of intensive care beds for children in Germany due to RSV (an illness I'd not heard of until recently).

Until this morning I didn't realise that strep A causes rheumatic fever (heard someone on the radio talking about it). My mother had it as a child.

I think the point was "we" as in the UK don't (routinely) vaccinate against chicken pox.

Wow, thanks ladies, I wasn't aware that you could get a chicken pox vaccine, good to let parents know these things. Mine had CP when little, I had it when I was 21, not much fun at all..

Back to the main topic, I would actually be terrified now if my kids were still very young, re the recent Strep A news. Maybe I'd be being foolish, worrying so much, but I wouldn't be able to help it. :-(

Whilst it’s likely that some parents are worrying needlessly- as in their child is ok, it is perfectly understandable that they are worried.
The number of deaths may not have increased much, but from 4 to 5 is something like 20% isn’t it?
Also there are a greater number of children in a hospital I know of and some are being intubated so - yes if you are worried about your dc then seek medical advice.
I would be topping up a good diet and fresh air with multivitamins and echinacea.

🤦‍♀️

Well I've pulled DCs out of nursery because of the cases there.

Last winter we had two hospital stays and ill children from October to March. GP confirmed it was likely because DC went from 2 years of absolutely no exposure to viruses to suddenly being in a room full of kids daily (kids who also had no immune system so were picking up bugs everywhere and sharing them. Basically overloading their systems all at once.)

So far this winter we've had two heavy colds back to back, with croup a few weeks ago and the cough still hasn't cleared from that.

GPs in my area are in "high alert" according to website and receptionists for this step A. Advisory messages about the effects and those at higher risk etc.

Yes, it's usually a pretty manageable virus but this strain is spreading like wildfire in some locations and even being referred to as serious outbreaks, and our kids quite simply do not have the immune systems we probably would have at their ages. It also takes 2 working days, 3 hours on the phone and a bit of luck to get a GP appointment so in all honestly I will do anything to avoid that.

GPs, hospitals etc are all on their knees already. Everyone should be doing all they can to avoid picking up this virus and others to help support the NHS through this outbreak.

Good point, we were never even asked if we consented to that vile stuff. Was just talking to a mum this morning who bleaches everywhere in her house due to fear of this bacteria- seriously people! Let kids eat worms/bogeys etc.

Oh God the Times is now talking about giving everyone ABs in schools with outbreaks. Why not test first?

Maybe the government don’t have any friends who could profit from a mass strep a testing scheme ……

On the subject of chicken pox. I didn’t know up until last year you could pay to vaccinate against it in the UK. I also didn’t know if they get it under one they can get it again! My dd had it as a baby, caught it again when she was older and was much worse than the first time but nowhere near as bad as her little sister that she passed it on to. It was horrendous. She was really poorly with it and absolutely covered, lips, inside her mouth, genitals, uncontrollable temperature…I wish I’d vaccinated her. If any one’s dc have yet to get it I would vaccinate

@GabrielAgreste hope you don’t mind me asking how your little one is now? My 17MO has come down with something today and I can’t work out what’s going on. He too had a mild cough, temperature, was sick twice this evening after dinner, very tired and grumpy. Did you figure out what yours had? Hope they are ok x

@Smearywindowsagain please see my above post - how are yours getting on? All ok I hope!

I’ve felt like this too but realised it’s because the way they are reporting, it’s making my mind flip back to the panic back at the beginning of Covid except this time it’s surrounding DS. I have health anxiety so I am normally anxious whenever he gets unwell anyway - he’s currently unwell but I’ve managed to stay level headed about it because when you look at the numbers as a whole yes it’s worse than previous years but it’s not as bad as the media are making out.

don’t get me wrong if he gets symptoms I’ll be very worried, and I think a lot of my worry is coming from the antibiotic shortages as well - but at the moment I’m reminding myself it’s always around and the chances of it becoming the serious form of IGAS are very small.

Because it’s all over the news and cases are higher than usual. My son had it when he was younger. No one was worried. We took him to the walk in centre and were told they don’t like to give antibiotics but to bring him back in a few days if he wasn’t better. They did give them eventually as he wasn’t improving.

@MintGreenLife yes all ok now. The cough hung around a good two weeks but they were all fine in themselves quite quickly after the throwing up. There’s a couple of kids in my daughter’s class this week had a similar thing, coughing and a bit of vomiting thrown in.
Hope your little guy recovers quickly.

@Eatentoomanyroses glad to hear they are ok now! We had a rough night and only managed a couple of hours sleep. He was sick once more in the night (4 times now) and temp went up to 39 once nurofen had worn off (given after he had managed to have something to eat). Really hope he seems a bit better once awake this morning! He’s currently asleep on DH! X

DC has been suffering from the affects of it since end of October and had had 3 rounds of antibiotics now, the first case was scarlet fever but the rest have been other strep A infections. The thing won’t shift, and has been referred to ENT for further study.

we have been lucky in getting access to penicillin although the school denied there was any issue and no one at the school had it (even though my DC did) and the list of people checking in penicillin at the school was growing.

then after closing on last day send an announcement out, saying there had been A case of scarlet fever.

Also a neighbours younger child just got diagnosed with Scarlet fever and there was no antibiotics for them, doctor proscribed but no pharmacy within 30 miles had any and the one alternative avliable they would dispense without a change in prescription, which will take forever as the GPs are just uncontactable.

I worry for the child