"We do see more strep throat in the wintertime, and severe strep infections are a rare, but well-known complication of influenza," says Dr. Hatchett. It may have to do with the strain of bacteria, according to the Nova Scotia Health Authority's Chief of Microbiology. Dr. Hatchett says these severe cases aren't a cause for panic, but anyone with signs of an infection should see a doctor. "But then there's also the person, so are there features of the person that make them more at risk for severe infections," says Dr. Todd Hatchett. It usually causes strep throat or skin infections, but in extreme cases, the bacteria can become invasive and lead to serious illness like necrotizing fasciitis, or 'flesh-eating disease'.
A Nova Scotia woman who gave birth just three weeks ago has been diagnosed with so-called flesh-eating disease and placed in an induced coma. Relatives of 33-year-old Lindsey Hubley say she delivered her son on March 2 in Halifax following a routine pregnancy, but became sick soon after returning home and was rushed to hospital by ambulance days later. Lesley Mulcahy, a spokeswoman for the Nova Scotia Health Authority, confirmed that they had a recent case of severe invasive group A strep. She says so far in 2017, there have been seven such cases in the province, with four considered non-severe. Her sister-in-law, Susan Hubley, says doctors immediately took her into surgery, where it was determined she had necrotizing fasciitis and was going into severe septic shock.
collected by :Lucy William
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