Girl with strep A too ill to be moved to Israel for treatment

The four-year-old child hospitalised with strep-A is too ill to be transferred to Israel for the time being but the health ministry is on standby for any changes to the decision, permanent secretary Christina Yiannaki said on Tuesday.

The girl, who is currently intubated at Makarios hospital, is the first hospitalised case for invasive group A streptococcal disease following the recent outbreak and child deaths in the UK.

A paediatrician specialising in infectious diseases arrived from Israel on Monday to treat the patient following Yiannaki’s intervention and left late at night.

Asked on Tuesday about the possibility of transferring the girl to Israel, Yiannaki said the specialist did not recommend it as her condition was deemed too critical and could worsen if she is moved.

She added however that the health ministry is ready to mobilise a transfer if it is deemed necessary at any point.

Speaking to Cybc radio earlier in the day, professor of paediatrics and infectious diseases Maria Koliou assured that doctors are doing their best to treat the four-year-old girl.

She appealed again for the vaccination of children and vulnerable groups of the population with the flu vaccine, saying that only 15 to 20 per cent of children have been vaccinated against the flu.

Koliou noted that the influenza virus facilitates the penetration of other infections into the body, which are not unusual, especially in the month of December.

Health Minister Michalis Hadjipantela recently met the paediatric society to discuss the issue and take relevant decisions. After the meeting, the ministry issued advice on Strep A while a week ago it said it will distribute strep tests to paediatricians.

In the UK, over a dozen children have died in recent weeks from the infection according to Reuters. The UK Health Security Agency has said there is an increase in infections, but that there was no evidence to suggest a new strain of the bacteria.