Rare but ‘catastrophic' bacterial infection behind NSW children's deaths
Associate Professor Kathryn Browning Carmo, acting director of the NSW Newborn & paediatric Emergency Transport Service (NETS), told an inquest into Pippa's death on Tuesday that hers was one of the first 'in a series of cases' of Group A streptococcus (iGAS) the emergency service dealt with over a two-year period.
Carmo said NSW was largely 'immune naive' to what appeared to be a more aggressive form of the bacteria Streptococcus pyogenes when doctors at Orange Base Hospital called for NETS assistance around 6am on June 13, 2022, hours before Pippa's death.
The infection was rare but could lead to 'devastating, crashing and catastrophic' cases of sepsis in children, Carmo said, noting that some children could go from having very little water in the lungs to 'complete whiteout' on scans 'within hours'.
'It was that aggressive … it was an absolutely devastating illness,' she said.
An academic paper co-authored by Carmo and read in court showed the NETS team were referred to 77 cases of children with iGAS between November 2022 and February 2024. Four died from the infection.
In the previous five years, they had responded to just nine cases.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
7NEWS
a day ago
- 7NEWS
Half of Aussie kids are struggling — could this be the breakthrough?
It's the silent struggle playing out in homes, schools and playgrounds across the country. A hidden health crisis that is impacting more and more Australian children. From toddlers to teens, experts are reporting a disturbing surge in psychological distress. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: See the full special report only on 7NEWS tonight live at 6pm. Rates of depression, anxiety and self-harm are climbing, with growing concerns that our youngest generation is now facing an epidemic of mental health issues. And many experts believe it's getting worse. According to Nicola Palfrey, Head of Clinical Research at Headspace, around half of all young people say they've experienced psychological distress. That's a staggering statistic, and one that has only intensified in the wake of the COVID lockdowns. With the explosion of screen time, endless hours on social media and fewer opportunities for real-world connection, the warning signs are everywhere. The impact isn't just emotional. Youth advocates and community leaders are witnessing the change firsthand. Some children are withdrawing. Others are acting out. And families, desperate for answers, are often left with nowhere to turn. But now, in an exclusive new 7NEWS investigation, a major Australian study has revealed a glimmer of hope. Researchers from the University of South Australia have analysed hundreds of clinical trials involving more than 38,000 young people across the globe. Their findings could mark a turning point. The research team, led by Dr Ben Singh, says the results are not only surprising - they are also incredibly encouraging. The study suggests that something simple may hold the key to real change. Something non-invasive, accessible and within reach for nearly every Australian family. It's not a pill. And it doesn't come with a prescription. This Sunday night, 7NEWS explores the surprising new strategy being used in schools, youth programs and even backyards. Emotional testimonies from kids, parents and professionals reveal how it's changing lives. Among them: a teenager who says it's what gets him through the day when school becomes too much. A youth mentor who's seeing transformations she never thought possible. And a community of young people who are finally starting to feel like themselves again. In a world where mental health headlines are often bleak, this one might just restore your hope.
West Australian
2 days ago
- West Australian
Studies show Vitamin D levels influence COVID-19 severity for a particular ethnic group
Having low levels of vitamin D may increase the risk of hospitalisation with COVID-19, Australian and UK scientists have reported. The findings followed an observational study of the health records for 151,543 people in the UK. Sunlight is the primary natural source of Vitamin D for humans. Whist low vitamin D increased the risk of hospitalisation among white patients, it didn't so among Black or Asian patients. The study authors, from the University of South Australia and King's College London, said Vitamin D plays an important role in immune modulation and deficiency is associated with increased susceptibility to acute respiratory syndrome as observed in COVID-19. They reported that black and Asian populations with low vitamin D levels were at a higher risk of catching COVID-19, but this did not translate to increased hospitalisation. Vitamin D and ethnicity may independently influence COVID-19 outcomes, rather than interacting to affect risks, the authors concluded.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
In rural Canadian town, new risk of measles deepens vaccine tensions
In the Canadian town of Aylmer, where Mennonites in traditional dress walk down the main street alongside secular locals, bitter divisions over vaccine skepticism that arose during Covid have intensified with the reemergence of measles. Canada, which officially eradicated measles in 1998, has registered over 3,500 cases this year and the United States is confronting its worst measles epidemic in 30 years, with the UN warning of the global risk as misinformation and lack of funding impact vaccination rates. Different communities in Canada have been hit, but experts link the brunt of the outbreak to anti-vaccine Anabaptist groups in the provinces of Ontario and Alberta. Growing up in Aylmer, a bucolic town surrounded by farmland in southwestern Ontario, Brett Hueston said he didn't give much thought to the differing world views among the town's religious and secular residents. That changed during the Covid-19 pandemic. "I grew up, perhaps naively, thinking that we were all sort of on the same page as a community," said Hueston, 40, whose family publishes the 145-year-old local paper, the Aylmer Express. "Covid really exploited whatever differences there were," he told AFP. Aylmer was a pandemic flashpoint. The town has 13 churches, a substantial number given its roughly 8,000 population. A major congregation -- the Aylmer Church of God that sits on an expansive, well-manicured grounds -- enthusiastically defied some lockdown restrictions. The church's pastor, Henry Hildebrandt, tried to challenge the rules in the supreme court, before agreeing in 2022 to pay a CAN$65,000 ($47,400) fine for gathering people to worship. Hildebrandt said he admitted "to one count of obeying God rather than man," asserting that he had knowingly broken the law. Hueston said "when measles came up, I thought, I know where this is going." "Everybody thinks... Mennonites are (all) anti-vaxers. It certainly isn't the case, but there's certainly a conservative part of this end of the county that is strongly anti-vaxer, and I don't quite understand it," he told AFP. - 'Difficult to watch' - Michelle Barton heads the infectious diseases division at the Children's Hospital at the London Health Sciences Center, southwestern Ontario's main referral hospital. She's seen some of the most serious pediatric measles cases this year and told AFP observing the recurrence of a once eradicated virus has been "difficult to watch." She noted that not every case can be tied to unvaccinated Mennonites. Infections have also occurred among new immigrants from the developing world who, for various reasons, did not keep up with immunizations after settling in Canada, including due to an acute family doctor shortage. Barton said it was long clear "pockets of unvaccinated people" made the region vulnerable to measles. She recounted a range of attitudes towards vaccines among Mennonite families. Some mothers, when confronted with how sick their children had become, voiced openness to vaccinating their other children, only to back away, fearing consequences from their husband or pastor, Barton told AFP. "They don't want to go against the grain of their culture, and they don't want to go against the (church) elders," she said. She also voiced sympathy for a Mennonite community that faced "resentment" from some healthcare workers, who at times displayed frustration over having to respond to an entirely preventable outbreak. Barton said she hoped the relationships forged between medical staff and vaccine-skeptical families could improve acceptance, and she encouraged public health officials to persist in trying to bring church leaders on board. - 'Wall of lies' - For Alon Vaisman, an infectious diseases doctor at Ontario's University Health Network, officials must keep trying, regardless of opposition. "From a public health perspective we ought not to accept anything to be insurmountable when it comes to vaccine campaigns." Child vaccination rates remain below where they need to be, making another viral outbreak, including measles, possible, Vaisman said. "There really needs to be more of an effort," he told AFP, conceding the difficulty of finding a successful path forward. "You're fighting against the wall of disinformation and lies," he said.
