Northern Ireland Public Health Agency rules out school closures over Streptococcus A outbreaks

The Public Health Agency in Northern Ireland has ruled out school closures to deal with outbreaks of Streptococcus A.

In a press briefing on Tuesday morning, officials explained that school closures were generally not considered to be an effective way to deal with infection outbreaks.

The PHA's comments come after a five-year-old child died in Belfast. It is understood the girl had suspected Strep A.

Dr Philip Veal of the PHA explained that evidence from previous infectious disease outbreaks show that school closures were generally ineffective ways of controlling the spread of infections.

He said children and young people tend to still congregate in larger groups even when not in school, and the closure of schools often means that to children are cared for by grandparents.

This leads to older and more vulnerable people being exposed to potential infection, and therefore increases the risk of fatality.

The PHA said other methods of control practices are more effective, such as the use of tissues to catch sneezes and coughs, regular thorough washing of hands and parents keeping children off of school if they have symptoms of a Strep A infection.

The PHA is also attempting to raise awareness among parents of the symptoms of Strep A infections.

The current Strep A outbreak across the UK is occurring at an unusual time of year; health officials normally expect to see the disease spike in spring.

There are several theories being considered as to why this outbreak is occurring in early winter.

A change in people's social mixing patterns after two years of restrictions is one theory.

The rise may also reflect a change in the natural immunity levels of children who were raised during the years of lockdowns.

Children's immune systems develop through being exposed to a range of illness in the early years of their lives.

During the height of the Covid pandemic however, children spent much less time mixing with large groups of people, and therefore may have been exposed to fewer illnesses, giving their natural immunity less time to develop.

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