The number of patients with streptococcal infection, a type of infection that primarily affects children and causes symptoms such as fever and sore throat, has remained at a high level since the beginning of the year.
Group A streptococcal pharyngitis, a type of streptococcal infection, is a bacterial infection that mainly affects children.In addition to fever and sore throat, it also causes a red tongue and a red rash on the body. Symptoms such as rash may occur.
According to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 14,419 patients were reported from approximately 3,000 pediatric medical institutions nationwide in the week ending on the 11th of this month.
The number of cases per medical institution was 4.61, which has remained at a high level of more than 4 cases for four consecutive weeks since the middle of last month.
By prefecture
, Tottori Prefecture has 10.47 cases
, Yamagata Prefecture has 9.54 cases
, Hokkaido Prefecture has 8.98 cases,
and Fukuoka Prefecture has 8.23 cases, with
four cases exceeding the national warning level of 8.
Kiyoshu Taniguchi, director of the National Hospital Organization Mie Hospital, who is an expert on infectious diseases in children, said, ``Even if you contract bacterial infections such as streptococcal infections once, you don't immediately develop immunity, so the epidemic tends to last for a long time.'' If a child is infected and refrains from going to kindergarten or school, parents may be forced to take time off from work, which may place a social burden on them. I would like people to be careful and take precautions."