In the fourth quarter of 2022, there was also an unusually steep increase in infections with the scarlet fever pathogen A streptococci in Germany. This is the result of a data analysis by the Robert Koch Institute, about which Germany’s state disease control authority provides information in the current issue of the epidemiological bulletin. Accordingly, people of all age groups were infected with the pathogen.
No evidence of a new strain of bacteria
The epidemiologists assume that the high prevalence of colds and flu in autumn and at the beginning of winter also promoted the spread of the scarlet fever pathogen. Overall, however, the number of confirmed cases in 2022 is still lower than in the years before the pandemic. According to the RKI data, there were 676 cases of scarlet fever in the last ten weeks of 2022 alone. In the previous year there were 40 cases in the same period, in 2020 there were 94 cases at the end of the year.
The relationship between the so-called invasive and non-invasive courses of the infections has not changed either. In an invasive infection, the bacteria enter the blood. In this case, the disease can become severe. Such a disproportionate increase in severe courses was not observed, it said. There is no evidence of a new, dangerous strain of the bacteria.
If you have symptoms: stay at home and see your doctor
For its report, the RKI evaluated data from antibiotic resistance monitoring, transmissions according to state regulations and the National Reference Center for Streptococci. All three sources had counted significantly fewer scarlet fever infections during the corona protection measures than before the pandemic.
The current, renewed increase is no reason to give up the reluctance to prescribe antibiotics in the presence of a simple sore throat, they say. If you have symptoms of a respiratory disease, those affected should stay at home for three to five days and visit their family doctor.