A Nottingham health leader says the city's parents have faced long waits on the NHS 111 service due to the "sheer volume" of calls around Strep A. Nottingham's director of public health says no cases of invasive Strep A, which has claimed the lives of nine UK children, have been recorded in the city.
Scarlet fever is also caused by this group of bacteria but this illness is mostly mild. The UK Health Security Agency also says an iGAS infection becoming fatal is "rare" but as cases continue to rise across the country, Dr Simmonds said: "There were long waits for parents getting a call back from the NHS 111 service last night and if they are worried about their child and are facing a long wait, they will obviously bring them into the emergency department.
But Lucy Hubber said: "It's really important to say that we regularly carry around Strep A without ever noticing it and without ever presenting any symptoms of illness. Scarlet fever is the main Strep A illness and we have seen cases rising but we always expect a rise, it has just come earlier this year than expected.