Sustained Increase of Paediatric Invasive Streptococcus Pyogenes Infections Dominated by M1UK and Diverse Emm12 isolates, Portugal, September 2022 to May 2023

• Author(s): Gouveia, C ; Bajanca-Lavado, MP ; Mamede, R ; Araújo Carvalho, A ; Rodrigues, F ; Melo-Cristino, J ; Ramirez, M ; Friães, A
• Date: 2023
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.17/4780
• Origin: Repositório do Centro Hospitalar de Lisboa Central, EPE
• Subject(s): COVID-19*; Child; Chromosome Mapping; Portugal / epidemiology; Streptococcal Infections* / diagnosis; Streptococcal Infections* / epidemiology; Streptococcus pyogenes / genetics; United Kingdom; HDE INF PED
• Document Type: Journal article
• Language: English
• Contributor(s): Repositório da Unidade Local de Saúde São José

Description

ince autumn 2022, observed numbers of paediatric invasive group A Streptococcus infections in Portugal (n = 89) were higher than in pre-COVID-19 seasons. Between September 2022 and May 2023, the dominant diagnoses were pneumonia (25/79), mostly with empyema (20/25), and sepsis (22/79). A number of cases required admission to intensive care (27/79) and surgery (35/79), and the case fatality rate was 5.1% (4/79). Genomic sequencing (n = 55) revealed multiple genetic lineages, dominated by the M1UK sublineage (26/55) and more diverse emm12 isolates (12/55).