2024-03-22 08:36:52
Cases of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome have exploded in Japan since the start of the year. These are severe forms of invasive Streptococcus A infections, fatal in one in three cases. The sustained pace of the spread worries the country, now on red alert over a large part of the territory.
Japan has seen cases of Streptococcus A infections explode since the start of the year. (illustrative image)
IMAGO/AFLO
There is concern in Japan due to the rapid spread of a worrying bacteria. Severe forms of invasive streptococcal A infections, with a high mortality rate, have been observed.
941 cases were recorded over the entire year of 2023 by the National Institute of Contagious Diseases, while already 422 cases were recorded between January 1 and March 17, reports the newspaper The world. 27 of the 47 departments of the archipelago are now on red alert.
Group A streptococcus, “which has a high epidemic potential”, is transmitted from man to man, “by air or by direct or indirect contact in the entourage of patients with skin lesions, tonsillitis or other mucosal lesions,” according to the French reference center (CNR).
Mechanisms still obscure
The bacteria, whose pictorial nickname “flesh eater” makes one shudder, can “induce an infection of the subcutaneous tissues and necrotizing fasciitis, named after the fascia, the tissue that covers the muscles. Then occurs a failure of several organs including acute renal failure, respiratory distress syndrome which is also acute and disseminated intravascular coagulation, a coagulation anomaly which can result in haemorrhages and thromboses”, detail our colleagues from Le Monde.
As for the CNR, it specifies: “These invasive infections occur in people of all ages, without predisposing factors. They can be accompanied by fatal toxic shock syndrome in more than 40% of cases, despite intensive care treatment and antibiotic therapy.
“There are still many unknown factors regarding the mechanisms behind fulminant (severe and sudden) forms of streptococcus, and we are not at the stage where we can explain them,” commented the National Institute of Diseases Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of Japan.
Letting go after Covid?
If the causes of the spread of this infectious disease are not clear at this stage, the possibility of a relaxation of barrier gestures after the Covid pandemic could be an explanation, according to the Japanese authorities. The population is reminded of good hygiene habits, such as hand washing and wearing a mask.
Asked by ActuAntoine Flahaut, professor of public health and epidemiologist at the University of Geneva nevertheless puts things into perspective: “Streptococcus A has existed since the dawn of time and the epidemics that we can observe here and there, as currently in Japan, have not nothing exceptional,” assures the specialist.
1711098970
#Japan #red #alert #Flesheating #bacteria #spreading #full #speed