The childhood diseases making a post-lockdown comeback

“Everyone is concerned, obviously, because older children tolerate this virus quite well – why were they not?” she says.

When Covid-19 rampaged across the world, many countries introduced strict lockdowns to thwart transmission of the virus. Children were kept out of schools and nurseries for weeks or months on end. Now that they are mixing again, doctors have noticed periodic surges in other diseases, including RSV, flu and illnesses caused by Group A streptococcus, a bacteria also known as strep A.

Sixteen children have died in the UK since September following strep A infection. According to the UK’s Health Security Agency (UKHSA), during 2017-18, the last high season for strep A in the country, a total of 27 deaths in under 18s were recorded. However, the 2022-23 season is not yet over.

Epidemiologists continue to investigate whether Covid-19 lockdowns increased the likelihood of surges in other diseases, given that respiratory infections were more or less stopped in their tracks during the first year or so of the pandemic. There is also the possibility that catching Covid-19 has increased children’s susceptibility to other diseases by harming their immune systems somehow – though doctors say this is unlikely, as there is no evidence for such an effect. But what exactly is going on?

For weeks now, on routine conference calls with fellow doctors around the country, Ronny Cheung, a consultant paediatrician in London, has heard reports of strep A infections and respiratory viruses causing problems for children. “It’s been notable,” he says.

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Although strep A, for example, is not usually life-threatening – it might simply cause a sore throat or tonsillitis – in rare cases, it can cause invasive, potentially deadly infections including meningitis.